Second Chance
by Linda09
Summary: Clark missed his first chance with Lois because he was focused on the wrong girl, but everyone deserves a second chance and he’s determined to get it right this time. Story classified M for occasional strong language and sexual content – Clois
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Second Chance

**Author:** Linda09

**Disclaimer:** I am not in any way affiliated with DC Comics, Smallville or anything else, I do not own the characters and am making no profit on this. The only thing I do own is THIS story which is mine.

**Rating:** The story moves between T (mostly) to M (for the occasional strong language and sexual content). However, as it had to be classified, I chose what I felt would be the best rating overall and made it **M**. If you are underage, and shouldn't be reading the adult stuff please do not do so. If you are of age but don't like sexual content, just bypass it.

**Premise**: This story started as a simple romance, but it quickly became a romantic/comedy. I began writing it a few months ago when it popped into my head and just refused to be ignored. I couldn't stop wondering what if:

• Clark married Lana when she returned from her 'fake death' in S7 and

• Lois left S'ville after the first episode in S7 before Lana returned.

This story will not be exploring the years Clark/Lois didn't see each other. They may have a few conversations about that time, but it's not going to be the central theme. The theme is basically; finding love and second chances.

Linda

**

**Chapter 1**

He was free; after years of living with the witch from hell, he was finally rid of the anchor around his neck for good. Lana Lang nee Kent was out of his life once and for all and he'd never been happier. Clutching the divorce papers in his hand, Clark Kent brought them to his mouth, smacked a kiss on them, and didn't even bother trying to suppress the smile of joy that stretched his lips, from one corner of his mouth to the other.

To think that 10 years ago marrying Lana had been the happiest day of his life, little did he realise that almost 10 years to the day, the happiest would be when he was divorced from her. He felt almost intoxicated with the feeling of freedom; he was rid of the burden that had been dodging him since he was a kid, and had never felt so unfettered, so alive.

He was supposed to feel sad, regretful but couldn't feel anything other than joy. If he never saw Lana's face, never heard her voice ever again, it would be too soon for him.

Several hours later he was enjoying a nice dinner and drink with the best friend a man could have. Chloe Sullivan had been there for him since they were kids; she'd helped him, listened to him and stuck by him through thick and thin. He was grateful that he'd been blessed with such a good friend.

"Welcome to the divorcees club." Chloe smiled and clinked her glass against his.

"Thanks, it's a club that I've been dying to join for years, and now I finally have." He grinned in return.

She let out a gurgle of laughter and shook her head "Clark Kent, you've come a long way."

"You know it Chlo and I'm never going back."

Her brow lifted in question "So what now, please don't tell me that one bad experience has put you off marriage altogether?"

He shook his head in reply "No, but right now I'm not interested and even if I was, love and anything else has to wait. I'm 29 Chloe, and I've put it off long enough but it's time that I go and do my training. I didn't do it years ago because all I wanted was a normal life with Lana...." he quickly held up his hand when her mouth opened "...yeah I know and please don't remind me, anyway moving on. After that I didn't do it because I was married and couldn't just leave for an indeterminate period of time. When I wanted out of the marriage I was tempted, but couldn't. God knows I thought about it numerous times, but running away from Lana and our problems would have been cowardly since I didn't know how long I'd be gone for." She nodded in understanding "Then I had to stick around for the divorce to go through, but now that that's all over with, there's nothing to hold me back, so I'm finally going."

"When do you leave?"

"Tomorrow, I don't have to worry about apartments or anything else as I've been living with mom at the farm since the split, so as there's nothing to hold me back; I leave tomorrow." He finished with a small smile.

"I'm going to miss you but I'm glad that you're doing it." She reached over and patted his hand "I think it'll be good for you."

He nodded and smiled "So do I, it'll be nice if I can find a way to help the JLA without having to hide anymore."

She bobbed her head once again "Well then this is both a congratulatory dinner and a farewell one too."

"I don't know how long I'll be gone, but it won't be forever Chloe."

She smiled and when they parted ways after dinner, she hugged him close, cried a little and wished him good luck.

Hugging her back just as hard, he promised to come and see her upon his return and grinned at her wrathful reply that he'd damned well better.

_Five years later...._

It felt good to be back. Upon his return to the world that he'd left behind when he embarked on his training, he'd gone to Smallville to see his mom first. She'd screamed, cried and hugged him to within an inch of his life. Once his mom let him out of her arms, with the admonition that he come back that night for dinner, he'd gone to see Chloe and had been the recipient of the same reunion that he'd had just left.

He'd been back for a month, had an apartment in Metropolis, was working with Chloe and his old friend Jimmy at the Daily Planet, and tonight he was having dinner with Chloe and all his old friends in the JLA.

Oliver had been thrilled that he was finally going to join the JLA; he was excited about venturing on this new phase of his life, and couldn't believe how wonderful everything had turned out.

The restaurant was upscale, but not so ritzy that people only spoke in hushed whispers, and he was certainly glad that Oliver had made it clear that he was picking up the tab. Although he could have afforded it, he was glad that he didn't have to spend half a week's pay on just one dinner. He was touched that Oliver was throwing this welcome back to civilization and finally joining the JLA dinner for him; and even more touched that his friends from all over had made the time to come. It was almost a party atmosphere, between the chatter and laughter, the catch up gossip and joking; the mood was light-hearted and carefree. It was so nice spending time with friends that he hadn't seen in years, and looking around the table, he was grateful that he had these people in his life. At the sound of Chloe's voice he was brought out of his musings and tuned back into the conversation.

"Well Clark, two new jobs and a new life, so are you going to start looking around for Miss Right to share it all with?" She asked with a smile.

He shook his head in reply "Not right now; I'm going to take some time for myself, I've never really done that before."

Her eyes widened comically "Oh god, please don't tell me you're going to become some kind of sad pathetic player on the singles scene."

He guffawed and shook his head again "No Chloe, that's not me either. I'm not going out looking for anyone, but if or when I meet the right woman I'll know it. I'm no longer the naive boy I used to be, so I'm going to use my big head, not my little one the next time I think I've found the right woman."

Everyone smothered their laughter and nodding; she grinned "That would be much appreciated." She sipped her drink then cocked her head to the side "You made a mistake Clark, well haven't we all..." Everyone nodded in agreement "...but as you said before, you're older now, so you'll do better this time around." She paused and continued ruminatively "I have to believe that we all get a second shot at happiness. That the first time is just a trial run, kind of like an entree to the main meal, but the second time is when it counts because you've learnt from your mistakes, and are all the more determined to get it right."

"Hear, hear." Oliver grinned, lifting his glass in salute to which everyone joined in.

After taking a sip of his drink Clark grinned "Well here's to destiny, because believe it or not, I still trust in it, but this time I'm going to wait for the right woman, no matter how long it takes." Once again they clinked glasses then got down to the serious business of deciding what to order.

Hearing the burst of feminine laughter from a table on the other side of the room, they all looked at each other and smiled "It sounds like someone else is celebrating as well."

Nodding their heads, they turned back to their menu's to continue reading, but at the sound of the voice they hadn't heard in years, two heads simultaneously looked up, and their eyes widened in surprise.

Standing beside the table where the feminine laughter had come from was Lois Lane. Chloe hadn't seen her cousin in years; unfortunately during Lois' last 13 months in Smallville, their prior closeness had melted away, until it was virtually gone. They'd stayed in touch occasionally for about a year after her cousin left Smallville, but over time their contact had dwindled, until it stopped altogether.

It had been 15 years since Chloe had last seen her cousin, Lois hadn't returned to Metropolis but seeing her now, she wondered if her cousin had come to the city, but hadn't sought her out. Now that she was no longer infatuated with Clark, and now that she no longer felt threatened by Lois encroaching on her chosen profession, she felt sad that she'd let her resentment come between them.

Lois had never said anything to her, but neither was she stupid. Her cousin had tried countless times in different ways to bridge the distance that had been growing between them, but as she hadn't been willing, Lois had eventually given up. When Lois left Smallville, she'd promised to keep in touch, but she couldn't blame her cousin for not trying very hard to do so; she hadn't given her any reason to. During their last phone call Lois mentioned that she was still thinking of pursuing journalism, and in reply she'd laughingly commented that her previous work for the Inquisitor couldn't be called journalism, so much as tabloid trash.

Wincing internally at her insensitivity all those years ago, Chloe concluded that Lois must have decided to put everything about her time in Smallville behind her; including the little cousin that she'd once loved, but who'd turned on her in jealousy. Seeing Lois now, she wished that she hadn't been so resentful, hadn't let anything come between them, and determined that somehow, she was going to try and mend the fences that she'd thoughtlessly torn down between them.

***

Clark heard the voice, looked over and couldn't believe that the woman standing beside the table was Lois Lane; the same Lois Lane that had lived at his house years before. He hadn't seen or heard from Lois since her departure from Smallville when she was 20. Unfortunately his thoughts at the time had been full of Lana being dead, so although he'd been sorry to see Lois go, he hadn't missed her unduly. Then Lana returned a few months later, and Lois was forgotten in all the excitement of having the girl he loved back. After that his mind had been taken up with his marriage to Lana, then later their troubles and divorce. Lois had been gone for over 10 years by that time, he'd been doing his training for three years, travelling for two more, then his return to civilization and fitting back into the world he'd left behind. So with one thing or another Lois had slipped from his mind, and he hadn't thought about her since shortly after her departure.

He couldn't believe that she'd slipped from his mind so completely, he'd always believed in destiny, but it hadn't been destiny that he'd followed when he married Lana. It had been the stubborn determination of a boy who was going to marry the girl he'd always fancied, come hell or high water. Long before they'd gotten married, the writing had been on the wall about just how ill-suited and miserable they'd be, but he'd dismissed all the signs, resolved to have his way and had certainly paid for it.

He'd been a blind young fool, and looking at Lois now he couldn't believe just how blind he'd been. He'd heard Lois' voice, turned, saw her and his heart had leapt then slowly rolled over in his chest. He didn't need to use his big head to know the truth, his heart was speaking loud and clear, pointing and yelling and this time he was listening 'she's the one.'

How the hell had he missed it before? How had he looked at and talked to Lois for two years, yet never once suspected that she was the woman he was meant to share his life with. How had she lived with his family, lived in Smallville, and he'd still been oblivious to the truth that his heart now knew?

Lois had only gotten more beautiful with age, at 20 she'd been pretty, a girl on the verge of adulthood, but at 35 she was stunning, no longer a girl but a woman. She didn't seem concerned about laugh lines, wrinkles or making a fool of herself in public. She was impatiently blowing her hair out of her eyes, and smiling wide while making a laughing toast to her friends, completely unconcerned about anyone else in the room.

Now that he'd found her, now that he knew, he wasn't going to make the same mistake again. He checked her hand, saw no ring and felt his sprits rise. She could have a boyfriend, but until he knew otherwise, he wasn't going to entertain that possibility. If she did then he'd wait and hope the relationship didn't work out, but the minute she was free he was going to swoop her up. Destiny was giving him a second chance, and this time he was going to take it. He'd messed up the first time, but this time around he wasn't stupidly looking the other way; this time around he was going to be smart. He was going to win Lois Lane's heart for his own, no matter what it took. With a bit of luck she'd also know straight away they belonged together, but if not, he wasn't going to let that stand in his way.

"Is that Lois?" Oliver asked looking at the woman with a smile of appreciation.

Clark nodded absently and found it hard to look away, but turned back to his dinner companions at his friend's voice.

"Who's Lois?" Bart asked curiously, and at Oliver's explanation, he nodded "I remember now. I never met her, but I remember you guys mentioned her once or twice." He looked at Lois again, and commented "Ok, she is one beautiful woman." Then cocking his head to the side asked "So what the hell was wrong with you Ollie that you walked away from her?"

"AC left her too, and Clark didn't even notice her." Oliver replied weakly.

With a quick head shake at all three men, Bart picked up his drink and sipped "How about calling her over Chloe, I wouldn't mind getting to know your cousin."

She smiled sadly in response "We lost contact years ago and that was my fault. But seeing her again, I thought....well I'm hoping that I can try and make up with her. If I'm lucky Lois will let me back in, and we can start fresh."

"You will Chloe, Lois has a big heart and she was always pretty forgiving of her little cousin." Clark put in quietly.

"Her little cousin was a bitch to her Clark, and not just once but a lot of times." She replied regretfully.

He smiled sadly in return "It'll be ok Chlo, I know you're nervous but the first step is always the hardest. I think Lois will be glad to see you."

"I doubt that she's even thought of me, and I wouldn't blame her for that either. I was pretty mean to her the last time we talked, and that was 14 years ago. She didn't call me again, and I couldn't find her so....." She trailed off and shrugged cheerlessly "She's in Metropolis but I didn't even know it, I wouldn't have known it now if I hadn't seen her tonight" She paused and wiped her hands nervously on her napkin "But I have to try, even if she tells me to get lost I have to apologise to her."

He nodded and picking up her hand, squeezed it gently "She'll forgive you Chloe, and apologising is a good way to approach her. It'll show Lois that you're not willing just to pretend that you've forgotten whatever you said that hurt her years ago, but that you really do want to make things right."

She smiled tremulously and nodded.

"Make sure to bring her over Chloe, I wanna see if I can work my charm on her." Bart put in with a quick smile, hoping to ease the tension his friend felt.

"Don't even think about it Bart." Clark replied flatly and at the inquisitive look from his friends, cast his eyes around the table "You talked about second chances a few minutes ago Chlo...." She nodded slightly "...well I mentioned destiny, and once I saw Lois, I knew that she was my second chance. Destiny is giving me another shot, and this time I'm going to get it right."

"Are you sure that you're thinking with your big head Clark, Lois is beautiful I'll grant you that, but so was your ex-wife, and look how that turned out. You haven't seen or spoken to Lois in how long?" Bart asked seriously.

"15 years but I'm sure Bart, it's not hormones or her face or anything else; I outgrew the surface stuff years ago, and I'm old enough to control my hormones now, they no longer control me." He smiled lightly at the head nods from his friends "I just know that this time I'm right. Lois is the woman that I'm going to spend the rest of my life with; she's the one I should have been with all along." He smiled when his friends all grinned "Lois Lane is going to be my wife; she just doesn't know it yet." He put in lightly but with absolute assurance.

"Well before we begin planning your wedding, I'm going over to talk to my cousin." Chloe said softly "Wish me luck."

"You'll be fine Chloe and if you can, put in a good word for me." Clark beseeched just as softly.

"Hopefully I can get Lois to come over, and you can talk to her yourself." She replied patting him on the shoulder, and pushing back her seat, Chloe blew out a deep breath, and walked to the table where her cousin was sitting in the company of her friends.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Lois was enjoying the company of her friends enormously. They hadn't seen each other in months, between busy schedules, busy lives and living in different cities, getting together wasn't something they could do very often, but when they did, she always had a good time.

The last of her friends was getting married, and she felt pleased as punch for her. Abra had always been a lot like her name; a complete earth mother. She was the friend who brought you soup when you were unwell, made her own bread, crafted her own quilts and gave out handmade Christmas presents. She was nurturing and caring, but unfortunately had never found a man to share her life with until now.

Sam was a wonderful man who loved Abra dearly, and Lois was happy for her. Her friend had only ever wanted to meet the right man, get married and make a home for them, unfortunately she was the one who'd found it the hardest thing to do. But now that she had, all of them were just as happy and excited for Abra, as she was herself.

She looked around the group of her friends and smiled. She was so lucky, so blessed to have such wonderful, genuine friends. They had all ooed and ahhed, made suggestive comments and laughed over the gifts each had given the bride to be, and deciding that it was time to propose a toast, she filled her glass and rose to her feet.

Picking up her knife, Lois tapped it gently against the glass and once all eyes turned to her; grinned "Ladies, this is a solemn occasion; tomorrow our friend Abra will be getting married, which means she's going to be getting some on a regular basis." At the burst of laughter from all around, she smiled wider "I hate her for that, but love her for everything else."

"Hear, Hear."

Grinning, she blew the hair out of her eyes impatiently, and turned to the woman of the hour "Now, as one of your bridesmaids I will ensure that I'm there for you tomorrow when you take this huge step, but do not call me and talk about your sex life. Since I don't have one, I'll have to use my frustrated sexual tension to come back to Metropolis and kill you."

Her friends all called out variations of the same, and with a flushed happy face Abra rose to make her response "I promise not to talk about my sex life; although it's freaking fantastic..." She broke off giggling at the shouts all around her "Thank you for all the beautiful gifts you've given me, I'm sure that Sam will love the teddy, and everything else I got just as much as I do." At the cat calls and hoots she wiggled her brows then sobered "The four of you are my best friends; and I want to thank you all for coming. I know it's not easy with schedules and kids, work and everything else you have going on; but knowing that you're all going to be there when I marry Sam, makes the most special day of my life, even more so just by your presence."

Smiling they lifted their glasses in a toast then began to chat quietly amongst themselves while waiting for their deserts to arrive. Topping up her glass once again, Lois chatted casually with her friends and at the light tap on her shoulder looked up inquisitively, then started in surprise at the ghost of her past that had materialised behind her.

She put down her glass, excused herself to her friends then pushed out her seat to stand and face the cousin that she hadn't seen or spoken to in years.

She could see that Chloe was nervous, and hoping to put her at ease, but at the same time save herself from polite chit chat, gave a small social smile in welcome "Hi."

"Hi." Chloe cleared her throat nervously when she realised that conversation had stopped, and all eyes at the table were now on her. Turning back to her cousin she smiled shakily "I saw you across the room, and thought I should come over to say hi."

Lois nodded politely in reply "It's nice to see you."

"You too." Chloe swallowed hard and no longer caring what anyone thought, stepped closer, put her arms around her cousin and hugged her hard "I'm sorry Lois, I'm so sorry for what I said years ago, for being so dismissive to you, for hurting you; for everything."

Lois' arms came up and wrapped around her cousin "Ok Chloe, it was a long time ago, let's just forget about it, alright?"

Chloe shook her head, pulled back, swiped a hand under her nose and shook her head once again "I don't wanna forget it, I want you to know that I'm sorry. I tried to find you but couldn't. I wanted to call your dad, but the only way I could do that was by lying and saying that it was an emergency. I was tempted but thought I'd get in trouble with the army for lying just to talk to a general when he's so busy. I didn't know where Lucy was and although you sent my dad Christmas Cards, there was never a return address so I figured you didn't want me to know where you were." She grabbed a napkin from the table, carefully wiped her eyes and blew her nose "I don't blame you for dropping me, but when I saw you tonight I had to come over, try and make up; hope that you wouldn't hate me anymore."

Lois smiled through her tears and shook her head lightly "I never hated you Chloe; I couldn't, but after our last conversation, and with everything that had gone before it, I figured you didn't wanna to hear from me anymore. To be honest I really didn't wanna talk to you either, and in the end, I thought it was best to just cut ties altogether."

Nodding in understanding Chloe blew her nose again and smiled gingerly "I want my cousin back Lo, I've wanted her back for years; please."

Smiling Lois pulled her little cousin back into her arms "I can't say that I've thought about you a lot over the years; but when I have, I've missed you like hell Chloe."

"I've missed you too." She replied hugging Lois back fiercely "I know it's been a long time, but I still love you Lo."

"I love you too."

They pulled apart, looked at each other and laughed in sheer relief and grabbing another napkin carefully wiped each other's eyes, laughing again. Placing an arm around her waist, Lois turned and introduced her cousin to her friends. After bobbing her head and greeting all present, Chloe turned to Lois once again "I don't wanna to interrupt your dinner, but I'd like it if we could spend some time together."

"Well how about we have dinner tomorrow night, during the day I'm booked with Abra's wedding, but if you're free we can get together about 7." At Chloe's nod, Lois smiled "Ok, let me just give you my cell phone number...."

"Hang on Lo, you're going to be busy tomorrow so why don't you just come to my place and we'll have dinner there. That way you don't have to worry about dressing up or anything, and if you're running late, you can call and let me know when you can arrive."

Lois nodded in agreement "Ok, let me grab my purse and I'll jot down your number."

"Actually, my purse is over at my table so I can give you my number and address and um...." She cleared her throat softly at her cousins curiosity "There's a couple of people who'd like you to come over if you could; just for a few minutes to say hello." Turning she pointed to the table.

Lois looked over and saw a table of men smiling at her. She smiled diffidently in return, turned back to Chloe and shook her head "I have no idea who they are."

"There are three of them who remember you, and a couple that you don't know, but if you could spare a few minutes...." Smiling in encouragement she trailed off and hoped it would be enough.

Nodding Lois turned back to her table "I'll only be a few minutes; apparently there are some old friends of mine who wanna say hello." Her friends nodded "I'm not going over there looking like crap; what'd I need."

"You like fine Lo; great actually, just touch up your lipstick and you'll be good."

Nodding she grabbed her purse, reapplied her lipstick, checked her teeth and eyes, and deciding that she looked good enough, considering she'd been crying only a few minutes previously, snapped her compact closed, and turned to walk with her cousin across the room.

***

Watching the reunion between the two women Clark smiled in relief; it had looked touch and go there for a minute, but it was clear that they'd made up and he was glad. Years ago Chloe and Lois had been closer than sisters, and knowing that his best friend had made up with the woman he intended to one day soon call his wife, his heart lifted.

When Lois had looked over at the table, her brow had creased slightly, and he knew that she hadn't recognised him. That wasn't surprising; he didn't look anything like the 19 year old boy she'd last seen so long ago. His hair was no longer just a shaggy flop but shorter and styled somewhat; not much he had to concede, but better than it used to be. He now wore glasses, and his physique and face was no longer that of a kid, but a man.

It was still kind of deflating that she didn't recognise him, since he'd recognised her straight away; but hopefully this time, he'd make a much better not to mention a more memorable impression on her. She clearly hadn't thought about him, anymore than he'd thought about her in the past 15 years, but from tonight he was going to do everything he could to change all of that.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

As the women approached the table, the men got to their feet and smiled in welcome.

Sweeping out her hand to the first man, Chloe made the introductions "Lois, I'm sure you remember Oliver Queen."

Lois gave a small start then shook her head incredulous "Ollie; I never recognised you, the goatee has certainly changed your look, but it suits you."

He posed and smiled "Thank you, so what'd you think; even more handsome?"

She put her hand under his chin, moved his face this way and that; grinned then let her hand fall and shook her head "Definitely more handsome; but since you dumped me couldn't you have behaved like a real gentleman, and given me something to pick at you about? Why haven't you become obese from overeating because you missed me; or given yourself a hideous scar in reminder of the dumb thing you did by leaving." She sighed hugely "Why can't you give me one reason to wipe my brow in relief that I'm not still stuck with you?"

"Sorry." He grinned unrepentant.

"That's ok, I've gotten back at you even though you didn't know it." At his curiosity, she smiled big and wide "When my friends and I talk about our ex-boyfriends and we describe how handsome they were...." He nodded eagerly and smiled "....I just say you had a nice personality." She finished after a beat.

"Ouch." He chuckled in appreciation; while everyone hooted in laughter.

Grinning she turned when her cousin addressed her and pointed "You should remember this guy Lo; he saved you from drowning a long long time ago."

Her brows rose, recognition clicked and turning her head to the side; she asked "Chloe, am I going to be meeting a bunch of my exes?"

The men grinned, Chloe smiled and shook her head in reply then continued to enjoy watching the reunion as much as everyone else.

"You look great Lois, have you been keeping up with your swimming?" AC asked politely while his eyes took their fill.

"Are you still using the same cheesy lines that I loved?" She countered with a slight lift of her lips.

"Nope, I've got a whole new set of cheesy lines that I use now." He informed her loftily.

"That's a shame, I particularly liked the one about you sucking the water out of my pretty lungs" She replied straight faced.

"Yeah that was a good one, but after using it on you I had to retire it, no other girl was good enough for that one" He shook his head sadly as his eyes smiled into hers.

"Aww that's so sweet; and you know that line you just gave me about retiring it was pretty good too, I'd have fallen for it." She nodded her head, smiled and gestured with her hand "Well go ahead, give me another one and I'll tell you if it's any good."

"Maybe later; I'll try and catch you alone in the coat-check room." He wiggled his brows and sent her such an exaggerated lascivious leer that she laughed in return.

When the next man stepped forward elbowing AC out of the way, her brows lifted in amusement.

"Lo this is Bart Allen; you haven't met him before." Chloe supplied with a slight gurgle.

"Hi Bart." She put her hand in his and her lips lifted automatically, when instead of shaking her hand, he kissed the back of it instead.

"It's nice to finally meet you Lois, and just so you know, I would never be as half-witted as my friends and leave a beautiful woman like you." He leant towards her and whispered loudly "So what'd you say gorgeous, you and me; tchk tchk."

She threw her head back in laughter "Oh now that was romantic; how can any woman resist such an offer....or your charm?"

"Is that a yes?" He asked eagerly.

"No."

"Damn, that's the same answer I always get; maybe I'm doing something wrong." He wondered aloud.

"Well as tempting as your offer was, it lacked a certain something...." She trailed off delicately.

Bart scratched his chin and shook his head sadly "Yeah, the ladies are always telling me that." He perked up and smiled at her winningly "Tell you what Lois, why don't you give me some lessons on how to charm the ladies ....private lessons?"

"Private lessons; so tell me during these lessons will I be wearing clothes?" She asked with twitching lips.

"Society puts too much pressure on the outer packaging; I don't think clothes are important, they're just too restrictive." He sniffed disparagingly, with a decided twinkle in his eyes.

"Really?"

"Mmm hmm, a person needs to let their skin breathe." Her grin widened, so did his "But I'll tell you what, you can wear a pair of glasses....and high heel shoes." He tacked on after a slight pause.

"I'll get back to you." She replied promptly; the quiver in her voice unmistakeable.

He shook his head and sighed hugely "The ladies are always saying that to me too."

Her hand was unceremoniously taken from Bart's, and turning she addressed the next man in line "I'm real sorry that you were subjected to my friend here Lois, he has no manners."

"And you are....?"

"Victor; and I'm entirely at your service ma'am." He bowed gallantly over her hand, straightened up and winked.

"Well I know that we never dated..." She looked Victor up and down "....and that's a damn shame."

His eyes roved her up and down in return as his smile increased "A definite shame; but I just happen to be free at the moment, and one is such a lonely number....so do you wanna run away together?"

"Oh that's smooth." Bart snorted in laughter.

Lois cocked her head and between chuckles asked "Has that line ever worked?"

"Well I don't like to brag but...." Victor began modestly.

"Sure you do." Clark cut in taking Lois' hand from his friend. He'd patiently waited while his friends greeted and joked with her, but now it was his turn.

She smiled in response to the grin etched on his face, but when he didn't speak, she lifted her brows and waited. Finally giving up, she shrugged apologetically and turned to her cousin once again "Chlo?"

Trying to suppress her laugh, Chloe cheerfully replied "Lo, remember Clark Kent."

Lois' eyes widened comically, and grinning in pleasure she turned back to him only to find herself engulfed in his arms and hugged to within an inch of her life. Pulling back she shook her head "You look great Clark, and obviously nothing like I remembered."

"I'll return the compliment and say that you look great too, but I recognised you straight away." He returned light-heartedly.

"I thought women were supposed to be the observant ones?"

"So did I, but even with the darker hair colour I knew that it was you." He cocked his head to the side "I like it better then the blonde, but why'd you change."

She smiled in reply "I changed it back; the blondish colour was out of a bottle."

He tilted his head, gave her the once over and confirmed with a firm nod "Well I approve."

"Thanks, I'm sure to sleep easy tonight knowing that." She replied so dryly that he grinned in return "How's your mom?"

"Good, she's been back on the farm for years."

"Please tell her, 'hello' for me."

"Why don't you go out and visit her, I know she'd love to see you again."

She considered and nodded slowly "I'm only in town for a few days, but I'd like to see her if I can."

Oliver grabbed a spare seat and brought it to the table "Sit down Lo." Chloe urged.

Lois hesitated for a moment before sitting "Only for a few minutes, I really have to get back to my friends."

"What's the occasion; we heard the laughter?" Clark put in at her curious expression.

"My friend Abra's getting married tomorrow, so all of us bridesmaids decided to take her out to dinner for her last night of freedom."

Clark nodded and steered the conversation back to where he wanted it "If you wanna go and see mom, I can pick you up and drive you out to Smallville."

"Thanks but I can rent a car; don't forget I drove back and forth between Smallville and Metropolis enough times to find my way blind folded." She replied with a quick eye roll.

"I can still take you; I'd like to be there when mom sees you again." Not giving her time to answer he turned to his friend "Chloe you come too, it'll be like old times."

Chloe nodded and bit the inside of her cheek at the demanding plea in his eye, a plea which was swiftly replaced by a look of persuasion when he turned back to Lois. However, instead of answering she blew out a soft breath "Umm, it's been a hellavu long time, so if I'm wrong please excuse me, but when I left Smallville everyone thought Lana was dead...." Turning she addressed her cousin "....but Chloe didn't you tell me that she wasn't?"

"Yeah Lo I did; she staged her death to get away from Lex." She replied diplomatically and soon found that her cousin hadn't changed when she didn't bother with social politeness.

"What, was just leaving him and asking for a divorce too difficult?" Lois snarked sarcastically; at her cousins twitching lips she turned back to Clark and without mincing words got right to the point "It'll be nice to see your mom again, but I'm sorry Clark, unless Lana's changed I really don't wanna see her. I have enough of my own shit going on without putting up with anyone else's even for a few hours; and no offence but Lana....."

"None taken." He cut in lightly and nodded in understanding "She won't be there Lo. Lana and I were married but we've been divorced for a long time now."

She gave him a commiserating smile and nodded in return "Well hey join the club; who hasn't been divorced by our age?"

"Very true Lo." Chloe chuckled in response.

Lois noticed that all sitting at the table were nodding in agreement as well, and huffed out a laugh while nodding in accord.

"You're not surprised that Lana and I were married?"

"I would have been more surprised if you didn't get married, and later divorced." At his lifted brows she shrugged casually "Sorry I could lie but....no actually I couldn't." She finished with a quick shake of her head.

At the surprised burst of laughter, she turned to find the others sniggering in amusement.

"Sorry."

"Don't be; I like you Lois, dammed if I don't like a woman who has the guts to speak her mind." Victor chortled.

"Yeah well, it's gotten me in trouble on more than one occasion; I've tried to tone it down but...." She rolled her eyes and shrugged once again.

"You said that you're only in town for a few days, does that mean you don't live in Metropolis?" Clark asked politely regaining her attention.

She shook her head in reply "No, I'm just here for my friend's wedding; I'll be leaving in a few days."

'Where do you live?" He asked, knowing that it wasn't going to make a blind bit of difference to his pursuit of her.

"Seattle."

"Seattle?" Chloe put in surprised.

Lois nodded in return "Yeah, I've been there for almost 5 years now."

"How? Why?"

"How about we exchange stories at dinner tomorrow night Chloe?" At her cousin's nod, she turned and sent a general smile to everyone "I'm sorry but I have to get back to my friends. It was really nice meeting you Bart, Victor." She smiled at each man in turn, wished Oliver and AC, but when she turned to do the same to Clark, was forestalled at his question.

"Do you mind if I horn in on your dinner with Chloe tomorrow night Lois. I'd like to catch up with you as well since we don't have the time tonight, and maybe we can firm up our plans to go and see mom." He asked politely but kept his eyes firmly fixed on hers.

"Umm...." She looked at her cousin and at her nod, turned back to Clark and shrugged "That's fine."

"Great." He replied rising to his feet when she did "If you're staying at a hotel I can come and pick you up for dinner tomorrow night."

She shook her head and smiled "That's ok, I'm going to be tied up with the wedding for most of the day tomorrow, so I'll just grab a cab to Chloe's after I've had a chance to sit down and relax ....if I get a chance that is."

He nodded, Lois took the card her cousin held out, gave it a quick perusal and with a last smile and nod to everyone, turned and made her way back to her table.

***

Once Lois was gone Clark re-took his seat and waited for the good natured ribbing he knew was coming by the choked back laughter his friends were trying to suppress.

"I noticed that you weren't about to give anyone else a look in Clark." Bart replied dryly.

"Nope." He replied, picking up his drink to sip.

"And what if one of us wanted to get to know the lady better, or in Oliver and AC's case, renew acquaintances?" Victor put in with a smirk.

"Tough." He replied off hand.

Oliver shook his head in wonder "I can't believe how smoothly you hogged her to all to yourself after Chloe reintroduced the two of you."

One corner of his lips lifted in a self satisfied smirk.

"I liked the way he very smoothly conned her into visiting his mom." AC put in with a straight face.

He felt his smile grow wider.

"I especially liked the way he smoothly cut all us men out; effectively getting rid of the competition, and kept her focused on himself. No sorry I'm wrong; he let Chloe say a few words to her as well." Bart put in with a quiet laugh.

"Victor also said a few words to her; he said that he liked her honesty." He returned blandly.

His friend snorted in reply "Yeah, and don't think I didn't notice that you pulled her attention back to yourself very quickly my friend."

He shrugged unconcerned and sipped his drink again.

Everyone looked at each other, and turned back to him with brows raised in interest "Well Clark, what'd you have to say for yourself?" Oliver asked amused.

"I was so slick that I astonished myself." He grinned in satisfaction then turned to Chloe "Thanks for letting me horn in on your dinner tomorrow night Chlo."

She grinned in reply "Oh I had a feeling that if I said no, you would have accidently on purpose forgotten that Lois was coming over and turned up anyway."

"Yep." He nodded and when his friends all laughed, grinned big and wide.

"You're really serious, aren't you Clark?" Chloe asked quietly.

He sobered immediately and nodded firmly "Dead serious Chlo, no hesitations, no doubts or qualms; I saw Lois and I knew." He turned to the men and smiled lopsided "I'd say that I'm sorry for cutting you out guys out but I'm not. Just be grateful that I waited patiently while all of you greeted her; I think I deserve a few brownie points for that."

"Oh yeah, you were a real boy-scout." Oliver replied drolly.

"I was; unlike all of you, I didn't flirt with her, I just...." At Chloe's amused chuckle he turned his head with lifted brow "Yes Chloe?"

"You didn't teasingly flirt with her like this lot..." She replied sweeping her arm out to the men "....but it was pretty obvious that you were interested."

"I intended to be, do you think she picked up on it?" He asked cocking his head to the side.

"I don't think she realised it until you conned your way into our dinner tomorrow night, then I think she was confused by it." She replied honestly.

He nodded and considered "We haven't seen each other in years and back then things were different, so for tonight I'll take confused if it means that she'll be thinking about me, and tomorrow night I'll give her something else to think about."

Turning his head he looked over at the table of women and smiled; his grin became even bigger when Lois pulled out her camera and snagging a passing waiter got him to take a photo of her and her friends grouped together.

Turning back to his table, he wasn't surprised to find all of them looking at him in amusement.

"So Clark, are we going to have your attention tonight or are you physically sitting with us, but mentally sitting at a table across the room." Victor asked politely.

He coughed lightly and gave a lop-sided smile in return "Ha ha, let's order."

His attention did veer to the other table several times, and when the music began it made a nice soft background noise to the restaurant chatter. However, his eyes weren't the only ones on the small dance floor when the table of ladies took to the floor joining the few other couples who were already there. They certainly made a striking combination, all that femininity on one small floor, but it was the sheer enjoyment they had in each other's company that struck first.

When the song segued into the next number, his lips automatically lifted in turn when they formed a circle, their arms around each other's waists and began to sing.

_When no-one else can understand me  
When everything I do is wrong  
You give me hope and consolation  
You give me strength to carry on  
_

_  
And you're always there to lend a hand  
In everything I do  
That's the wonder  
The wonder of you _

He watched as they swayed softly, broke the circle to twirl each other around and dance, re-formed the circle again, but never stopped smiling.

The song was a romantic one, a song for a man and a woman, but Lois and her friends had turned it into a song about the love of friendship. Seeing the look on their faces, their grins, it was clear they meant every word.

_And when you smile the world is brighter  
You touch my hand and I'm a king  
Your kiss to me is worth a fortune  
Your love for me is everything_

Their voices and giggles rose; looking around the restaurant he noticed that couples and friends were also singing to each other, and turned back to his friends with a smile.

"Clark, you're my friend, but I'm not singing that to you." Oliver stated flatly, laughter bright in his eyes.

The men all chuckled; he smirked but turned at the sound of Chloe's voice. Her eyes were on her cousin and her friends still singing and dancing with each other "She's found some good friends, ones that she loves and who love her back the way that she deserves; I'm glad."

He reached over and patted her hand "You had that with Lois once Chloe; you'll get it back again, it just takes time."

She nodded and smiled mistily "I know; I really am happy for her Clark but more than that, I'm grateful that she's giving me another chance."

"She doesn't know it yet, but she's gonna be giving me one too." He replied lightly, enjoying her light gurgle of laughter before turning to look at Lois once again. She did look happy, and Chloe was right, it was obvious that she'd found some friends who loved her the way that she deserved. They were all grinning, totally unconcerned with what anyone else was thinking, as they continued to sing loudly.

_I'll guess I'll never know the reason why  
You love me like you do  
That's the wonder  
The wonder of you_

He was looking forward to getting to her know her friends, they were clearly important to her and eventually both their friends would get to know each other, and hopefully hit it off. His friends already liked Lois, but knowing that a woman's closest friends could either make or break a relationship, he decided that it was time to impress them, and with a bit of luck snag Lois' attention enough, that she'd definitely think of him that night.

He called over a waiter, made a request, smiled when his friend's brows and lips all lifted, then watched when the ladies returned to their table, and were swiftly brought a bottle of champagne.

They looked quizzical for a moment, the waiter pointed to their table, the two groups smiled at each other, and when Lois' eyes met his, he smiled, and inclined his head slightly while his mind silently whispered; _Ready or not Lois, here I come._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Lois enjoyed the rest of the night with her friends, and on her way out the restaurant, sent a last smile to the table on the other side of the room.

Parting ways at their hotel room doors, with the reminder that everyone was meeting in the bride-to-be's suite at 8am on the morrow, Lois unlocked her door, had a quick shower, put on her nightdress and switched on the TV.

However, unable to concentrate, she turned the TV off, pulled back the bedcovers, fluffed up the pillows and slipped into bed. After switching off the light, she got comfortable but instead of sleeping lay looking out the balcony doors.

She was glad that Chloe had seen her tonight and come over. Until she'd seen her cousin this evening she hadn't realised that she still missed her. For the first year or so after their last phone call she'd thought about her cousin occasionally, but as she'd decided that it was time to let go and move on, eventually Chloe had been forgotten in the business of living.

There'd been the odd occasions when she'd thought of her cousin over the years, and smile remembering back to happier times, but seeing her tonight had been nice. After the first few awkward minutes, it was like the last 15 years had never been; and she was looking forward to spending some time with her tomorrow night.

It had also been nice to catch up with Oliver and AC again, and to meet Bart and Victor, but Clark had surprised her. She was almost sure that he'd monopolised her time after they were re-introduced. In fact, if she didn't know any better, she'd swear that he was interested in her, which frankly she found stupefying.

He clearly wasn't obsessed with Lana anymore, if his tone of voice when he mentioned their divorce was any indication; but he'd never shown the slightest bit of interest in her company before tonight. True they hadn't seen each other in years, so he could have just been reacting like most single men do around a woman they weren't familiar with; but he hadn't laughingly flirted with her as the other men had done. She hadn't taken the others seriously but Clark had behaved differently to them, and that's what set him apart. She'd only been at the table for 10 minutes but from the time he'd taken her hand, his manner had been both attentive and attracted, with a touch of....determined.

She hadn't just fallen off the turnip truck, she knew when a man was interested, and was pretty sure that he was; but exactly what his intentions were had her baffled. He knew that she didn't live in Metropolis, so if he was hoping to tempt her in a long distance relationship then he'd soon find out it wasn't going to happen.

She could be reading the signals wrong, on the one hand he was Clark Kent, on the other he was nothing like the boy she remembered, making her all too aware that she didn't know the man he was at all. More than likely he was hoping to entice her into nothing more than a short term fling, and if that was the case, then she'd have to let him know that she also had no intention of indulging in a whirl-wind romp before leaving to return home.

But she couldn't seem to banish the look on his face and in his eyes when she'd turned to smile in thanks for the champagne. When the waiter delivered the bottle, she'd been touched at the token of friendship and good wishes sent to Abra by her old friends, and had turned to smile at them in thanks. She'd seen nice smiles and faces of friendship aimed back at her and her friends; but when her eyes met Clark's, she'd seen something more than just fondness or amiability, and that something had caused the butterflies in her stomach to flutter.

God her stomach hadn't fluttered over a man in years; years upon years. Yet it had then. She also hadn't expected to spend the night before her friend got married, to be thinking about a man.

Sighing she rolled over, yawned and closed her eyes. Tomorrow night at dinner she'd take her cue from Clark, and if she got the impression that he was interested, then she'd let him know that neither a short term fling nor an actual relationship was in her plans; fluttering tummy notwithstanding.

***

Clark climbed into bed and lay looking up at the ceiling unable to suppress the smile that touched his lips. He'd looked forward to the dinner all week but hadn't any kind of tingling, warning or premonition that his life was going to change and yet it had. He'd returned to his apartment a different man to the one who'd left. In the space of a few hours, he'd gone from being happy with his life to feeling so many things.

Scared, excited, and different; he felt different, more alive, more everything. After Lois had left the restaurant, he'd finally been able to give his companions his full attention; well mostly, and hadn't missed their swift looks in amusement to each other about it.

All joking aside, his friends had known that he was serious about marrying Lois, but they'd still been surprised when he'd revealed his full intentions; and he could understand their astonishment at the news.

The talk had been general as they ate their meals, but while waiting for desert, AC began to speak then stopped "Clark about Lois...." At the apologetic note in his voice, he'd waved his hand encouraging AC to continue.

"She lives in Seattle Clark, that's on the other side of the country, remember? If you want her attention, you're gonna have to do it with more than a bottle of champagne." AC finished quietly.

He turned to Chloe when she spoke next "He's right Clark, Lois is only going to be here for a few days, so unless she falls for you in that time; you're not going to get very far before she leaves Metropolis and goes home."

Looking around he found that all his friends were looking at him steadily in sympathy "A few days will give me the start that I need; and um....did all of you forget that I can fly; Seattle is no distance for me?' He replied unconcerned, but in a soft enough voice that only those at his table heard him.

"But Lois doesn't know that you can fly." Bart put in seriously.

He smiled complacently "She will; I'm going to be courting the woman and I can only do that if I see her. I don't intend to make up excuses about being in Seattle for work; at best I could get away with that twice in the space of a year, and I'm not going to wait that long between visits to spend time with her; so I'm going to tell her everything."

"You're gonna tell her, just like that?" Oliver asked dubiously.

"Just like that." He confirmed with a nod and when they all looked at each other dubiously he sighed "Guys I know two things without doubt; for the first time in my life I really understand what love is; and two, I'm not going to let anything screw it up." He smiled and shrugged "Years ago I thought Lois was a pain in the ass, but I knew that she was loyal as hell to those she loved, and she loved my parents. If she had found out about me, she would have kept it to herself, and I don't believe it would only have been for mom and dad's sake."

"Why didn't you tell her back then?" Oliver asked quietly.

"I didn't wanna tell anyone back then; I was young and scared; confused about everything, but the one person that I dreaded finding out more than anyone was Lana. I was frightened of anyone knowing but Lana was the big one, because I was nuts about her; but I'm not going to let my relationship with Lois be a re-run of that fiasco." He looked at each of his friends in turn "Lois isn't into playing hard to get and all that bull, you guys both know that..." He turned to Oliver and AC and both nodded in agreement "....well as you all no doubt noticed, she still speaks her mind and doesn't waste time with double talk. If I try to pull the same shit with her that I did with Lana, she won't put up with it, won't appreciate it, and won't be interested in dancing around the maple tree with me, playing coy little games like Lana did. I think Lois would be more inclined to tell me to piss right off, and that would be the end of it. Games are for children, and I'm sure as hell not interested in letting her think that I'm playing games, so I'm gonna tell her."

"You're not frightened of how she'll react?" Bart asked softly.

He nodded "Yeah I am, but I'd rather take the chance than not."

"What if she has a boyfriend?" Victor asked subdued.

"If she does then I'll wait." He replied quietly "I'm hoping that she doesn't, but if she does, then I'll bide my time until she's free." He lifted his glass in salute "Destiny's giving me a second chance, so I doubt that it led me to find Lois tonight, just so I could watch while she rode off into the sunset with someone else."

"You saw her tonight by accident." Bart reminded him dryly.

His brows flew up while his head shook back and forth "Accident; Bart my friend I haven't seen Lois in 15 years, she doesn't even live in Metropolis. I've only been back a month, and yet tonight out of all the nights, and out of all the hundreds of restaurants there are in this city, we both just happened to be here. That is not just a coincidence."

Bart grinned and lifted his glass in salute "Well we only talked for a few minutes but I liked her. Any woman who can laugh at, instead of slapping down my lame ass come on's is alright in my book."

Chloe smiled and reached over to pick up his hand "I'm glad Clark, you need a woman who'll not only stand strong by your side, but one who's as faithful as the day is long; and that's Lo."

He nodded and squeezed her hand "Yeah I know, she always used to give me a verbal kick in the ass when I needed it; not that I always paid attention but she did it anyway. She's also strong enough to stand on her own two feet without needing me to hold her hand every step of the way; and I find that attractive as hell."

She nodded and smiled mistily "Lo has no idea what she's in for does she?"

He shook his head "Nope, now that I've found her again, I won't settle for anyone else. I just have to get her to see that I'm the right man for her, and believe me, I'm gonna do it." His eyes swept over the table as the grin on his face became bigger "Gentlemen, get out your tuxes, Chloe go and buy a dress, because as soon as I can talk Lois into marrying me, there's going to be a wedding."

Coming back to the present, he rolled over and smiled. After the waiter took the champagne to her table, Lois and her friends had looked over to smile in thanks. When his eyes met Lois' he'd not only felt his heart kick hard once again, but he'd also seen her eyes widen for an instant before she'd blinked and it was gone, but it was enough; more than enough for a start.

Tomorrow night he'd be joining Lois and Chloe for dinner, where he'd have to casually find out all the pertinent details that he needed. Exactly how long she was going to be in Metropolis for; then figure out how he could wiggle into spending some part of each day with her without being a nuisance. Find out if she had a boyfriend or significant other that he needed to wait out; and also remind her about going out to see his mom.

Closing his eyes, he decided that he'd have to fly to Smallville first thing in the morning; he was looking forward to seeing his mom's face when he told her the name of her soon to be daughter in law.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Lois looked around the reception room, noted that most everyone had left and sighed hugely. The day had been a complete success; the weather had been perfect, not too hot or cold, the bride had looked beautiful, the groom proud and happy. The flowers, the music, the food, everything had been absolutely perfect and she felt pleased.

She'd wanted this to be the kind of wedding day that Abra would look back on with happiness, and knew that her friend would.

Turning to look at her friends, she noted they all looked as tired and happy as she felt, but it was a good tired; the kind when everything had worked out and now you could rest. Reaching for the bottle of champagne, she waved it around, silently asking if there were any takers and as 4 glasses were shoved in front of her, took that to be a yes. After filling all the glasses, Lois raised her own "To a wonderful day, and lifetime of happiness for Abra and Sam."

They all clinked glasses, and after finishing her drink she stood. "Ok, ladies, I'm going up to my room and with a bit of luck, I should still have time for a shower and sit down before going to my cousin's for dinner, so I'll see you all, ok?"

After exchanging goodbyes, she left the reception room, walked out to the lobby to the banks of lifts, and then it was a short ride up to her floor.

Once back in her room, she looked at the time, noted that it was almost 6pm and decided to have a nice long bubble bath instead of a shower. While the tub was filling, she stripped off her clothes, pulled on her robe, tied up her hair, removed all makeup and turned on the radio to a soft classical music station. Deciding the tub was full enough; she stepped in and lay down until fully immersed in the water then leant her head back on the cushion rest and sighed.

Now this was nice, after all the running around before the wedding, posing for photos, smiling and dancing for hours on end; just lying back with her eyes closed, listening to soft romantic music, felt as close to heaven as she was going to get.

They day had been nice, but thank goodness it was over. The next few days she could just be lazy. She'd go shopping, splurge on all sorts of things that she might not need, but most definitely want. Spend time with her friends before they all returned to their lives, and tonight she'd spend it catching up with her cousin.

When the water cooled, she stepped out of the tub, dabbed herself dry, put on her robe and walked back into the room, and was just about to raid the mini-bar for a drink, when she noted the time and realised that she'd spent a little longer in the tub then intended. Quickly dressing, she grabbed her purse and was out the door minutes later.

***

At the knock on the door, Chloe placed the wine bottle that she'd begun to open down on the coffee table, rushed over, pulled open the door then stood blocking the entrance with her body, while her eyes swept up and down her visitor.

"Are you going to let me in?" Clark asked politely after a minute.

Chloe moved aside and swept out her hand in welcome "Sure." When he stepped inside she turned to watch and found him looking around her apartment with interest "It's funny but somehow I knew it was going to be you."

"Lois isn't here yet?"

"No, Lois isn't here yet. So you can stop x-raying my apartment anytime now Clark." She replied dryly and shut the door.

He swung around and gave her a sheepish smile "How did you know it was gonna be me?"

"Give me a break." She rolled her eyes and gave him a light push in the direction of the couch "Make yourself useful and open the wine."

"I went to see mom this morning." He said causally, opening the wine and filling two glasses.

"And…?" Chloe asked taking the proffered glass he held out, and a seat on the couch beside him.

"And she finished making my outfit while I was there." He said with a light smile.

She sat up and her eyes sparkled "When do I get to see it?"

"I have it on now but if I show it to you, you have to promise not to laugh."

"Clark, people are going to see you in the suit when you wear it while helping the JLA." When his mouth opened she held up a hand "I know, I know everyone will be too busy gawking at whatever all of you are saving us from, to pay any attention to the newest Superhero on the block, blah, blah, blah. You've said all that before; now give me a look at your damn costume."

He sighed, took a fortifying gulp of wine, stood up and spun out of his clothes, and stood in front of his friend in his new costume "Well; what'd you think?"

Chloe's eyes moved up and down, and the corner of her lip curled "I'd be surprised if 5 minutes after your first appearance, at least a hundred websites don't spring up, all dedicated to the newest super-hero."

He blushed fiery red "Chloe; how's the suit look?"

Her smiled widened "I thought I just told you." When he growled she shook her head "It looks good Clark, believe me, no one's gonna be laughing." She bit her lip and nodded "It's really quite amazing, without your glasses and with your hair slicked back, you look totally different, but you need to change your stance, somehow." He crossed his arms and lifted his head proudly; getting excited she pointed "That, that's good; if you can keep that look of authority on your face, give off that aura, no one will be recognising you anytime soon."

He sighed in relief, spun back into his clothes and sat "I still haven't thought of a name to call myself."

She grinned and shook her head "Well you'd better think of one quick, or all those pre-teens in training bras, and those dreamy-eyed teenagers will be quite happy to give you a name." She tapped her chin and smiled devilishly "Let's see, they could come up with sexy legs, hunky man or....."

"Chloe stop; I don't wanna star in the prurient fantasies of teenage girls for god's sake." He grumbled, picking up his glass and gulping down the contents.

"Whether you want to or not makes no difference, you're going to." She grinned wickedly "And who said it was only going to be teenage girls; I just said teenagers."

He shuddered and poured himself some more wine.

Sobering Chloe asked him seriously "Clark, you're not going to just limit yourself to helping the JLA right?"

He shook his head "No, up until now I've helped people without being obvious as you know...." She nodded "...but I thought it would be easier if I made my first official appearance with the JLA to ease myself into it, and at the same time get people used to seeing me around."

She nodded again in understanding.

"Ok, well changing the subject. I told mom about seeing Lois last night and she all but demanded that I bring her to Smallville for a visit."

She snorted delicately into her wine glass "Did you tell her that you'd already conned Lois into visiting." He grinned and nodded, she nodded slowly in return "And did you tell her about your plans to mar…?" She stopped when he nodded once again "And what'd she say?"

He smiled in reply while his mind's eye recalled the way his mom had almost screamed in joy "Well as you know, years ago mom loved Lois like a daughter, so you can imagine just how happy she was. She laughed, hugged me and said that this time she'll be happy for me when I got married."

Chloe grinned in return "Oh, I think it's safe to say that this time everyone will be happy for you."

"You weren't the last time?" He asked genuinely curious.

Her lips crooked ruefully "I wanted to be, truly, but I couldn't help wondering how long it would be before the two of you hit the skids again, and you came crying to me with your marital problems."

He titled his head in query "How long after I was married did I came moaning to you?"

"About three months." She replied promptly "The honeymoon was obviously over since Lana was bitching about something....."

"Lana was always bitching about something." Clark cut in dryly.

She nodded quickly "Very true, anyway, you wanted some feminine insight on what you should do."

"Can you remember what you said?"

"Nope, but I can remember thinking; _oh for fucks sake not again; what the hell does he see in her?_"

Clark coughed out the sip of wine he'd taken and began to laugh "That's funny because only a few years later, I looked at Lana one day and thought; _what the fucking hell was I thinking?_"

This time it was Chloe who coughed out her wine; the two looked at each other and shared a hearty burst of laughter.

"God I'm glad those years are behind us."

"Me too." He replied with feeling and had opened his mouth to make another observation when a knock on the door had him quickly getting to his feet "How do I look?"

"You look fine." She replied with a quick pat to his arm, and stepping over, opened the door to admit her cousin.

"Hi Chloe, sorry I'm late."

"You're not; well you are but only by a few minutes, come in." Chloe ushered her cousin inside, shut the door, heard the greetings behind her and turned back to see Clark holding out a glass of wine to Lois.

"Thanks." Lois took the extended glass with a smile and turned around in a circle to look at the apartment "You have a nice place Chlo."

"Thanks, I've been here a few years." She waved Lois to a seat and after the three sat down she asked curiously "So how was the wedding?"

"Perfect, everything went off without so much as a hiccup; the only thing that suffered was my face, which is sore from smiling so much." Lois replied and lifted her hand to massage her cheeks.

Chloe and Clark nodded in understanding, and the three conversed lightly of this and that for several minutes, but deciding that he had to start somewhere, Clark cleared his throat and turned to Lois "So how long are you in Metropolis for Lois, I mean when are you leaving?" He asked courteously.

"Wednesday afternoon, I'm catching the 1 o'clock flight."

He nodded and put forward his suggestion "Well then how about we all go out and see mom tomorrow, we can spend a nice lazy Sunday in Smallville."

"That'll be nice, but are you sure your mom won't mind the three of us coming on such short notice."

"Nope, mom loves company and when I told her about running into you last night, she pretty much demanded that I bring you to Smallville ASAP." He grinned and rubbed his jaw "And as I'm sure you remember my mom is not a woman to be gainsaid."

"I remember." Lois smiled in agreement.

"Actually, unless I call and tell her different, she's expecting us all there tomorrow." At the amused smiles, he flushed lightly "She's mom, you try saying no to Martha Kent."

The two women held up their hands in peace. Turning to her cousin Lois smiled "Do you get back to Smallville often Chloe?"

She shook her head in reply "No, besides being busy with work, dad doesn't live there, so I only go there once in a while to visit Martha."

"That's nice, I'm actually looking forward to seeing the old stomping grounds again; not that I stomped there for long." Lois replied lightly.

Clark grinned in return "You stomped there for over two years Lo."

"Which is longer than I'd stayed anywhere before that time." She put in with a quick smile.

"Except for now; you said that you've been living in Seattle for about 5 years?" He questioned politely.

"Uh huh."

"And by what you said last night, I'm guessing that you're divorced?"

"Mmmm." She nodded in agreement, sipped her wine then turned to her cousin "Um what's for dinner?"

"Pizza." Chloe replied lightly "I figured that after being offered your choice of chicken or fish at the wedding, you might enjoy something simple."

Lois gurgled out a laugh "Chicken and fish; why is that always on the menu at weddings?"

"Not always Lois, sometimes its chicken or roast beef." Clark corrected with a quick smile.

The three looked at each other and chuckled "Obviously we've all attended too many weddings since we know exactly what's going to be served."

"True." Chloe replied rising to her feet "Ok, well I'm just going to call the pizza place, any

preferences?"

"Anything's fine, but make sure they don't put anchovies on my side." Lois piped up.

Chloe shuddered delicately in agreement "There won't be anchovies anywhere on it, trust me."

As soon as Chloe walked into the kitchen to pick up the phone, Clark turned to Lois once again "I hope that I didn't make you uncomfortable by mentioning your divorce."

"No, not at all; why would you think that?"

"Sorry it's just that you turned to ask Chloe about dinner and I wondered...." He trailed off uncomfortably.

She patted his arm in apology "Its fine Clark really; it's just that the wedding was in the morning, so we ate at lunch time and now I'm starving."

Hearing the truth in her voice, he sighed silently in relief that she wasn't still hurting from a relationship that hadn't worked out "Do you have any plans while you're in Metropolis?"

She shook her head in reply "Nah, I'm just going to take it easy."

He nodded then took a deep breath and asked quietly "Are you seeing someone right now; I mean do you have a boyfriend back home?"

She looked startled for a moment and had just opened her mouth to answer when Chloe re-entered the room "Ok, well the pizza should be here in about 15 to 20 minutes."

Lois nodded in reply "Do you mind if I have a quick look around your apartment Chloe?"

"Go ahead." She waved her hand cordially and getting up Lois did just that.

Turning to Clark the moment Lois was out of the room, Chloe grimaced slightly "Sorry, did I come back at the wrong time?"

He shrugged in reply "I don't know, I'd just asked her if she had a boyfriend but she didn't get to answer."

"Sorry Clark, I'll try and bring it up so it doesn't look like you're trying to pump her for information; or better yet, we can sick your mom onto her tomorrow. She won't be able to avoid answering Martha Kent." She replied quietly then smiled automatically at the look of delight that crossed his face.

Lois returned to the lounge room and retook her seat "You have a lovely apartment Chloe."

She nodded in thanks, sipped her wine "What's yours like?"

"I live in a house actually." At the surprise on both their faces; Lois grinned "I wasn't intending to, I was going to get an apartment but when I saw the house, I knew that was where I wanted to live." She paused to sip her wine and continued "I like having a garden and a backyard and believe it or not, I actually garden."

"Really?" Clark asked surprised.

"Mmm hmm; last year I had a little gazebo attached to the back of the house, so when I step outside the back door, I step right into it. It's partially enclosed and it's probably a little bit fancier than one should be, but I love it. I love just sitting outside when the weather's nice, enjoying a glass of wine, listening to soft music and relaxing; that's my kind of heaven these days." She giggled quietly "It makes a nice change from my job, so I love to be a complete sybarite when I'm not working."

"Did you end up pursuing journalism Lo?" Chloe asked quietly and when her cousin shook her head, her heart sank "I'm sorry for..."

She was cut off when Lois held up her hand "Don't be, it wasn't because of you Chlo, actually after our last conversation I pretty much thought; screw her I'm gonna do it anyway." She grinned good natured, and was pleased when Chloe's face lifted "I have got a journalism degree, but after getting it, I realised that it wasn't my chosen profession after all."

"So what'd you do?" Chloe asked curiously.

"I'm a writer." Lois replied simply.

At the knock on the door, Clark waved Chloe back to her seat, got up to retrieve the pizzas and soon they were all sitting at the table.

The food was quickly consumed, their wine glasses topped up and sitting back contentedly they quietly sat with full stomaches. "I have Tiramisu for desert; do either of you want some now or..." When both shook their heads, Chloe nodded and sat back in her seat once again "Me neither, we'll have it in a little while."

"You said that you're a writer Lo?" She waved her hand signalling yes while sipping wine "What kind of writer?" Clark asked curiously, figuring that she wrote romance novels or some such thing and was surprised at her answer.

Swallowing her wine she gave him a knowing smile "Books, I write books; true crime novels actually."

"Have you had anything published?" At her cousins lifted brows Chloe quickly rushed on "Sorry, it's just that I haven't seen anything with your name in print, so have you?" She finished looking at her cousin eagerly.

"Yeah I have; have either of you heard of Samuel Camilleri?" Lois asked with a slight smile. When she'd seen the books in Chloe's bookcase, she'd felt a little burst of pride at knowing her cousin read her books.

Chloe and Clark nodded and when Lois pointed to herself, they turned to each other in astonishment before turning as one back to her again.

"You're Samuel Camilleri?" Clark felt floored; he'd always thought the writer was a man since the books had a no-nonsense, gritty tenacious edge to them. Then almost smacked himself in the head; he'd just described Lois to a T.

"Yep." Lois nodded pleased at the confounded expressions both wore.

"But how...what's with the name, how?" Chloe asked dumbfounded.

"The names easy, Samuel is for my dad, and Camilleri was my married name. When I decided to write, I didn't want to use my own name because I thought people would be more inclined to read my book, if they believed a man wrote it. I figured if it had a woman's name on the cover, people would dismiss the book out of hand, assuming that it would be too girly or frou frou y'know?" She lifted her brow at Clark and he flushed lightly, but Chloe rolled her eyes and nodded in understanding "So I decided to use a pseudonym, and now I'm more than happy to keep it that way."

"How did you get into writing true crime novels?" Clark asked with interest.

"Well after I got my degree I was thinking about Journalism, and realised that what I liked about it was solving puzzles, and looking for answers; but once you do that it's over and you move onto the next article. Anyway, I decided what I really wanted to do was to take it a little further, and find out what drove normal everyday people to commit the heinous acts they do. What was so important they were willing to take lives just to get what they wanted?" She sipped her wine, and shrugged "I loved watching 'Crime Night' and 'The FBI files' on TV, so I decided to write about true crimes."

"I've read your stuff Lois and it's damn good, but isn't it a dangerous?" Clark asked quietly, feeling more than a little alarmed for her safety.

"Not really, I come in after everything's over. The police have caught the bad guy, the lawyers have moved in, justice has been served and the person's behind bars. Then I interview everyone involved; the police, the witnesses, the victim's families, the perpetrator and their families; and once I have everything I put the story together." She sipped her wine and shrugged "At first I wasn't sure if I should write about recent crimes or one's that were older; either way it's going to hurt the people involved. But I decided on cases that were a few years old, to hopefully keep the impact of what I was writing to a minimum for those who had lost a loved one. Mind you that can be pretty dicey as well. For some it's like ripping off a scab that's only just begun to heal, for others it's a catharsis, being able to talk and getting it off their chest." She shrugged once again "I make the approach, see how the winds blowing, and take it from there."

He nodded and smiled in sympathy "It sounds like you're walking on a highwire with no safety net."

"At times it feels like it." She replied with a nod.

"Unlike Journalists who have the public's right to know as a backup to some extent; do you need to get permission from all the parties involved?" Chloe asked curiously.

Lois shook her hand in a so-so gesture "Just like some journalists misuse the 'public's right to know' to make good copy, some authors have done the same thing with books, and both have ruined lives as a result. I don't wanna go down that path so I always get permission first, because I know that I'm dealing with some pretty heavy and fragile situations. Once the crimes been solved and it's been through the courts, a lot of police records are open for public scrutiny upon request, but there are limitations. Some parts of the investigation maybe held back due to privacy issues, or the nature of the case, the particular laws of the state or country etc, but keeping in mind that what I'm going to be writing about is going to hurt, and open old wounds, I try to be sensitive to the people involved. I don't wanna distress the victim's families; they've been through more than enough already, so I always approach them to get their permission beforehand." She paused and shook her head "If they say no, then I back off and look for another case to write about; you'd be surprised at how many are out there, then again being journalists you probably wouldn't."

Chloe and Clark shook their heads regretfully in unison.

Lois sipped her wine and shook her head sadly "Quite often the victims' family wanna talk about the person they've lost. They want to express how they feel, how their lives have been affected by what happened. They want to have their say because just having the case over and the person behind bars isn't enough. In court the laws have restrictions on what can and can't be said, so I give them the chance to unburden themselves if they want to. Believe it or not, sometimes the killer also wants to have his or her say as well." Her brows lifted and lowered before her voice became compassionate once again "The perpetrators families aren't always comfortable, mostly they just want to be left in peace so if I hit a roadblock I'll leave them alone, and hardly mention them in the book except as an aside; but occasionally they also want to talk, and if that happens I'll also get their permission."

"And the killer, do you get their permission too?" Clark asked curiously.

She lifted her brows once again "Yeah, but to be honest I really don't care how they feel. However, if I wanna write the book and keep it factual, then I need to talk to them to find out what their motives were, what they were thinking at the time, that kind of thing. The police and shrinks can't get totally inside their heads. They can make judgements using past history cases, and commonalities, but the only person who really knows what was going on inside themselves is the criminal." She paused and shook her head "I can't slant the story to suit myself, can't say what I really think about the perpetrator; I just give the facts and write the story in a novel type of way. But it's hard to disassociate at times, especially when the criminal has no remorse for what they've done."

Chloe nodded and shuddered "Doesn't it creep you out?"

Lois nodded slowly "Yeah, sometimes. Have you ever seen a close up photo of a great white sharks eye?" They both shook their heads "It's really chilling. As sharks don't have eyelids their eyes stay open all the time, and the great white's eye is like a solid matt black that just stares without blinking. You can see the cunning and the intelligence, but there's absolutely no emotion behind it at all. Well some of the criminals I've met have sharks eyes, and I swear it's like they have no soul. Once or twice I've wondered if they ever did, and when I meet someone like that, it's creepy."

Chloe shuddered once again "Eeee, how do you stay calm?"

She shrugged in a half-hearted way "It's not easy but I've learnt to divorce myself from the situation. Mind you, it also helps that guards are there, the person's cuffed hands and feet, or there's a glass wall between us."

The two nodded with feeling.

Clark shook his head lightly "Well, I've read all you're books Lois and you're an excellent writer, but I don't know how you manage to divorce yourself from it. There have been times when I've been reading one of your books, and had to put it down to take a breather because I got so angry at what was done."

Lois nodded in sympathy "I understand believe me, that's why I like to garden and sit in my gazebo, it takes me away from all of that."

"I've also read your books Lo and agree with Clark, they're brilliant, but remembering some of the cases you've written about, I don't think I'd have the stomach to face the criminals." Chloe grimaced slightly "I think I prefer my side which can be dangerous, but also gives me a feeling of distance."

Lois smiled in commiseration "I understand that too, I've been doing it for nearly 10 years now and have interviewed a lot of people; both the good and the bad, yet an up close and personal view can still make me feel quite sick too stomach as well."

Chloe shook her head "Well I admire the fact that you can do it regardless, and it gives me an even deeper appreciation of your books; you're one hell of a writer Lo." Clark nodded in agreement; Lois smiled and titled her head in thanks.

"Ok, so who wants desert?" When both nodded and smiled, Chloe dished it up and after handing round bowls, suggested they take their desert and drinks back into the lounge room and get comfortable. Lois took a seat on the couch, Chloe knocked Clark's arm with hers, took a seat on the facing recliner and smiled at the way he got very comfortable beside her cousin. Once they were all were settled, desert was rapidly consumed.

"Well Lo, you know that Clark's divorced, we both know that you are, and now for a hat trick, so am I." Chloe picked up her glass from the coffee table and lifted it in salute.

Lois smiled and shook her head "It's like a plague; maybe someone's going to walk in front of us calling out, 'unclean, unclean'; like in biblical times when they used to do that to warn people that those with disease was coming."

"Who are they going to call it out to; all the other divorced people in the world?" Chloe giggled softly.

Lois chuffed out a laugh "You're right, maybe someone could call out the warning 'never screwed up is coming' then we can all sneer."

Chloe and Clark sniggered; they all looked at each other and shared a burst of laughter before sitting back replete and comfortably quiet. Quickly lifting her hand to stop the yawn from escaping, Lois stretched lazily and turned to her cousin "I'm sorry Chloe, I woke up early and I've been running around all day, do you mind if I call it a night?"

"That's fine Lo; we can have a good chat tomorrow." Turning to Clark, Chloe lifted her brow "By the way, what time is your mom expecting us?"

"I told her we'd be there for lunch, so how about I pick you up at 8, we'll stop by the hotel to pick up Lois and then be on our way?" When both women nodded, he smiled. "Great, Lo I have my car outside so I can give you a lift back to your hotel."

She shook her head "Don't cut your night short for me Clark, I'm happy to catch a cab."

"You're not, and I don't mind." He replied casually and before she could refuse again, he got to his feet and said good night to Chloe.

Shrugging in acceptance, Lois likewise stood and wished her cousin good night. After supplying the name of her hotel, the two conversed lightly about nothing of importance on the drive. However, upon reaching the hotel, instead of just pulling up in front, Clark parked the car and despite her protestations, insisted on walking Lois up to her room.

The ride up to her floor was silent, as was the short walk to her room. After unlocking the door Lois turned around to thank him, but at the look on his face, the butterflies began to flutter in her tummy once again.

"Thanks for the lift Clark; I'll see you tom...."

"Lois." He cut in quietly.

"Mmm."

"It's nice to see you again." He said softly.

She nodded slowly "You too but I'm....." What she was going to say was lost, when he took a step forward and bending down pressed his lips lightly against hers.

He lifted his head "You didn't say whether you have a boyfriend or not?" He reminded her softly, keeping his eyes steady on hers.

"I'm...." She cleared her throat and tried again "No, I'm single but I'm not....." This time her breath caught when his eyes flared slightly. When he stepped a little closer, she put a hand on his chest to stay his movement "Clark, I'm not looking to have a quick fling between the sheets before I go home."

"Good, because neither am I." He replied firmly "I'd like to kiss you again Lois, but only if you'll let me."

"If you're not looking for a fling then why are you wasting your time with me, I'm leaving in a few days remember?" She countered just as firmly.

He nodded "I know but...look I have to tell you something, can I come in?"

Her brow lifted "You have to tell me something so you wanna come in; Clark this is all sounding like a come-on."

"It's not Lois; I really do have to tell you something, please." He stepped back, waiting for her to decide.

She hesitated before nodding and waved him to take a seat on one of the chairs grouped around the small table. Dropping her purse on the table she made her way to the mini-fridge "Do you wanna a drink?"

"Yeah, but can I get something non alcoholic." She nodded, opened the mini fridge and took out a bottle of coke, handed him one, retrieved a lemon squash for herself and sat in the seat opposite his.

He popped open the top, took a sip of his drink and smiled "You have no idea how glad I am that my friends and I were dining in that restaurant last night." When she shifted in her seat, he nodded, took a deep breath and keeping his eyes steady on hers, told her everything about Clark Kent and his origins.

She wanted to ask questions, a bunch of them but stayed silent, because the one question she wanted to ask more than any other; was why he was telling her anything at all. At dinner she hadn't gotten any signals from him, he'd asked if she had a boyfriend but after he'd let the subject drop, she'd assumed that he'd asked out of natural curiosity of an old acquaintance. She'd actually thought that she must have imagined his interest the previous night, until he'd insisted on walking her to her room. That was when she realised his focus on her hadn't shifted at all, he'd just approached her from a less obvious angle.

Either she'd been extremely tired or hadn't been thinking straight; it was the only thing that could account for her being so obtuse and slow witted, to not even pick up on his interest in her. He continued to talk while she listened with half an ear, wondering what she could say when he was finished. She wasn't stupid, she had a pretty good idea why he was telling her everything, and also knew that when he was done, she'd have to ask him why he'd told her, but in a way that neither hurt nor offended him. What he was revealing couldn't have been easy, but he'd put her in a hell of a position. When he grew silent, she sighed and rubbed her brow "Why did you tell me?"

"Because I wanted you to know who I am" He replied simply "I hid everything about myself for years because I was scared of how people would view me; especially the people that I cared about. But I know you Lois, and I know that I can trust you to keep it to yourself."

She shook her head lightly in reproof "You don't know me Clark."

"Yes I do." He countered softly "It's been years since we saw each other, but I know that I can trust you."

"Normally I'd ask the person to prove they have all those powers you listed, but since you wouldn't have told me unless you could prove it; and after living in Smallville for a time, I have no doubt that you can do everything you say." She smiled lightly and lifted one brow in query.

"I can, and I'm willing to prove it if you want me too." He inclined his head in accord.

"No, I'll take your word for it." She tilted her head in consideration "You always were a strange one Clark Kent."

"Does it make any difference to you; that I'm not human I mean?" He couldn't hear her pulse racing, it hadn't once picked up during his recital but he still needed to hear her say it.

"If you mean do I suddenly think you're a freak or anything like that; then no. You're still the same guy I used to know years ago." She smiled in gentle humour "Believe me some of the criminals I've interviewed over the years, are a lot less human than you could ever be."

He smiled in relief and got to his feet "I'm not a boy anymore Lois, I've changed a lot, but I get what you mean so, thank you." She stood in turn and walked with him to the door, but when she pulled it open, instead of walking through, he turned, bent down and placed his lips against hers once again.

She knew that he'd hesitated before pressing his lips against hers, he'd given her time to move her face aside, to step away but instead of taking it she thought 'what the hell' and let him kiss her. Almost immediately she knew that she'd made a mistake.

She didn't know if he'd lulled her into a false sense of security with the earlier peck and his bout of true confessions, but decided that it wasn't him who'd fooled her; but she who'd fooled herself into still thinking of him as just Clark Kent.

He brushed his lips against hers softly, once twice, his teeth nibbled gently on her bottom lip, his tongue swiped over the non-existent hurt before the tip probed at the seam of her lips. When her mouth opened, his tongue swept in, danced over her teeth, the roof of her mouth, exploring all the inner recesses before stroking gently against hers.

At the touch of his tongue against hers, the fluttering in her tummy was burned away in a fire that consumed. Her mind yelled at her to step away, to push him out the door but her feet and hands refused to obey. His lips were warm and firm against hers, he tasted absolutely divine; and she wanted more. Her arms lifted, wrapped around his shoulders, her fingers tangled in his hair and pulled his head closer.

His arms wrapped tight around her waist bringing her flush against him, his hands swept up and down her back. Mouths stayed locked, tongues danced and tangled, lips lifted slightly to change angles before coming back together again.

She couldn't believe it was Clark Kent that she was kissing, Clark Kent that made her feel the edgy excitement of knowing the sex was going to be sensational. Clark Kent who made her realise that heaven wasn't a nice warm soak in a tub, or sitting in her gazebo on a lazy lovely night; heaven was to be found right here in the arms of Clark Kent.

Clark felt like he was drowning in a sea of bliss; he'd intended to kiss Lois but had cautioned himself to keep it light, and not scare her off. However, once their lips touched, he'd forgotten all his good intentions. He'd fallen in love with Lois the previous night, but he hadn't expected anything like this. Years ago he believed that he'd loved Lana, and although kissing her, having sex with her had been nice, it had never consumed him like this. That had been nice; this couldn't be classified as nice. This was in a sphere he'd never experienced before, and he wanted more.

The fire in his belly hadn't started as a slow ember; it had shot straight to combustion level. Feeling Lois almost hum in anticipation, knowing that she was holding him just as tightly as he was holding her, made the intensity shoot up another notch.

When they were both almost gasping for breath, he let her go and stepped back. They stood there panting, just looking at each other, eyes wide with longing, faces flushed and sharp with arousal. Kicking the door closed with his foot, he stepped forward, so did she and once again they were in each other's arms.

Turning they stumbled through the room until they fell on the bed in a tangle of arms and legs. Time lost all meaning as they continued to kiss and caress, clothes were removed impatiently, tossed aside carelessly. When Lois paused at the touch of his suit under her hands, he shook his head and whipped it off. She looked at him, he looked at her, and then they both lunged. Mouths locked once again, and at the feeling of skin against skin, the fire that had already been ignited, turned into a blazing inferno that neither could deny, nor wanted to stop.

In the aftermath, Lois lay on her back panting harshly. Looking around the room, she saw clothes flung haphazardly over the chairs, and furniture, saw the wreck they'd made of the bed and grinned "I don't know whether it's just been too long or what, but that was the best damn sex of my life."

Clark stared unblinking at the ceiling unable to believe how fantastic he felt. At Lois' voice he turned his head, saw the gratified smirk on her face and unable to help himself, moved and covered her smiling lips with his in a quick hard kiss. Lifting up on one elbow, he shook his head back and forth in wonder "The best of _your_ life, in my wildest dreams and fantasies, I never imagined it could be like that. My god woman you were a hell cat." He turned his head, looked at his shoulder and looked back at Lois "I've got super strong skin, but even though I can't see them, I can still feel your scratch marks on my shoulder."

"You started it by kissing me." She stretched and smiled then sighed hugely "Well, so much for the fling I said wasn't going to happen." She lifted her hand tugged his head back down and kissed him again "Let's see if we can make it two for two."

He settled his mouth over hers, gathered her in his arms and kissed her senseless once again. They rolled over the wreck of the bed, but this time took it slower. Soft touches, whisper kisses, hands gliding, lips meeting and parting, and when he slipped inside her, both hummed in pleasure.

When it was over, he kept her locked in his arms and nuzzled his lips against her neck "Is it just me or was that just as good?"

"It's not just you." She replied, smoothing her hands up and down his back "We clearly have chemistry."

"I think we re-define the word chemistry." He sighed, kissing her throat then lifting his head to smile "I swear that all I intended was to kiss you goodnight."

"Yeah, yeah." She grinned mischievously "Well I'm in town for a few more days, so I think we should just enjoy it."

He nodded slowly but his smile dimmed "And when you leave?"

"When I leave, we say goodbye and that's it." She replied lightly, sliding her hands to his bottom and clenching slightly before wiggling her eyebrows "But we should make the most of the time we have; which means having non-stop sex."

"And what if I want to see after you return to Seattle?" He asked quietly.

"Clark c'mon, this is fun but...."

"But it's just sex." He cut in flatly.

"Well yeah, what else?" Lois asked puzzled.

"What else indeed." He replied softly. He didn't know whether he'd ruined everything or not, but wasn't going to let that stop him. "I don't want just sex Lois; I want us to see each other after you leave Metropolis." When her mouth opened he put a finger against her lips "I can fly to Seattle, but I want you to understand that this is not just sex for me. I want a hell of a lot more than just your body."

"Are you saying it's my mind you're interested in?" She asked light-heartedly.

He kept his eyes on hers refusing to let her turn this into a joke "I'm saying that I'm interested in all of you." His lips crooked up slightly "I'm not going to deny that I don't want your body, but I also want you Lois; I want the whole package."

She shook her head slightly "Clark I'm a grown woman, not a naive school girl who expects a boy to give her a bunch of pretty lies just because we had sex. We're both too old to play those kind of games."

"I'm not playing." He countered softly brushing the hair away from her brow. Seeing the dubious look in her eyes he smiled slightly "You're not ready and I can accept that; as long as you believe that I don't just want sex."

She sighed and rolled her eyes "It must be your upbringing." And nodding, she said lightly "It's actually kind of sweet, that even grown up and living in the Metropolis, you just can't shake your small town ways."

Knowing that was as close as Lois would concede that he was being honest, he lay back down and gathered her in his arms "This small town boy is interested in the city girl he's holding, and he's definitely coming to see her when she's back in Seattle."

Lois gurgled out a laugh "And how many times have you used that line."

"Just once, just now but it's not a line." He turned his head and lifting one hand cupped the side of her face "I want to see you Lois, I want us to spend time together, get to know each other again; in short I want us to be friends."

"Does that mean no sex at all?" She asked disappointed.

"Are you crazy, we're definitely going to make love...." He smiled at the look of relief on her face "...but I also think we could have something wonderful."

She hesitated and confessed softly "I'm not in interested in a relationship Clark; I've pretty much had my fill of them. If you want us to see each other, then it has to be on the understanding that for me, this is only casual."

He saw the stubbornness in her eyes, and decided on a compromise "How about we see each other while you're here, I'll come and see you after you return home, and we take it from there?" He had no intention of letting her go, but refused to frighten her off. For now he'd tell her what she wanted to hear "I don't mind if we take our time and keep it light, but I refuse to reduce either of us to being each other's booty call."

"I already have someone for that." At the look on his face she chuckled "I'm kidding; ok we can see each other, but we keep it light. No expectations or demands; agreed?"

This time he hesitated, and deciding that he was just going to have to change her mind to win her over, he nodded "Ok; can I stay?"

"Yeah." She lifted up slightly, and began to pull the covers back but his hand on hers stopped her movement.

"Hang on Lo, just hold onto me for a moment alright?" She did as asked; he floated them up, pulled the covers back and floated them back down. Zipping out of bed, he raced to the door, turned off the light, and was back a moment later, snuggling the covers over them. Scooping an arm around her waist he pulled her into the circle of his arms and kissed the side of her mouth "Goodnight Lois."

"Goodnight." She murmured around a huge yawn and was soon asleep.

He kept his eyes open gazing at her while she slept; if he had his way, tonight would be the first night they would sleep in each other's arms for the rest of their lives. He didn't know what he had to do to win her over, but he'd do it. She was obviously wary of getting involved, he'd heard the conviction in her voice when she said that she'd had her fill of relationships; but whether that was the result of her divorce or a combination of things he didn't know.

It was clear that the only way to break down her resistance was by taking baby steps, and not encroaching or pushing himself onto her. He'd have to be patient, and hope that by backing off slightly, not much but a little, it would give her the breathing room she wanted, and at the same time prove to her that he wasn't just looking for a playmate.

His agenda hadn't changed, if he was very lucky one day soon he'd have the privilege of calling her his wife, but until that day he wouldn't push. He would tell her of his love the moment he felt that she was ready to hear it, but until then, he'd find ways to show her how much he cared in whatever way that he could. Cuddling her tighter against him, he closed his eyes and soon joined her in sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Lois' brow wrinkled when she felt the presence of another person close beside her in bed. Turning over carefully, she opened her eyes; saw Clark's face and memory slid in. Well she didn't have any regrets about last night, not a one. However, now that lust wasn't clouding her mind, the thought of facing Mrs Kent later in the day sent a small shudder down her spine.

Hopefully the older woman wouldn't be able to tell that her son and her ex-houseguest, had spent the previous night tearing each other's clothes off and rolling around naked. Blowing out a soft breath, she slipped quietly and carefully out of bed, padded silently into the bathroom, brushed her teeth, had a quick shower then stepped back into the bedroom to find Clark was still asleep.

She wasn't normally uncomfortable with morning afters, and this was far from her first, but it was also different. On the one hand Clark was virtually a stranger to her, but at the same time he wasn't. They'd butted heads more than anything when she'd lived in Smallville, yet had greeted each other at the restaurant with more friendship then they'd shown back in the day. At best they could now only be classified as casual acquaintances, but one's who'd had no contact for 15 years, and who now had more contact then they'd ever desired before; which altogether made this situation one that she hadn't dealt with previously.

Shaking her head, she quickly ran a comb through the wet strands, tied it into a lose ponytail, slipped into a pair of shorts and t-shirt, then picked up Clark's clothes and piled them on the end of the bed. After tucking the room key card in her pocket, she quietly opened the door, and with a last look at the sleeping occupant, let herself out the room. Once in the hallway she let out a sigh of relief, stepped over to the room opposite, and gave a quick but gentle knock. When the door opened and her friend stood on the threshold yawning and blinking in sleepy eyed confusion, Lois smiled sheepishly "Sorry, did I wake you up?"

Carly Adams nodded, lifted a hand to stifle another yawn, opened her mouth to speak and paused. Her eyes became focused, turned sharp, roved Lois up and down, and smiling gleefully she all but sang "You got laid."

"Shhh." Lois whispered, looking up and down the hallway.

Grasping her forearm gently, Carly pulled Lois into the room, sat her down on the chair, took the seat opposite, sent a fleeting look to her sleeping husband, and leant forward "Who was he; I thought you were having dinner with your cousin."

"I did and he joined us; I knew him years ago." Lois waved casually "Anyway he was at the restaurant...."

Carly in turn waved her hand cutting into Lois' monologue "He was the tall one with the black hair and glasses right?" At Lois' nod, she smiled in delight "I knew it."

"Knew what?"

At look of perplexity on Lois' face, Carly let out a peal of laughter then quickly slapped a hand to her mouth when her husband grumbled quietly "Lois, the man was all but eating you with his eyes in the restaurant. Didn't you notice the look he gave you after the champagne was sent over?" At Lois' light flush, she grinned big and wide "He was smiling in our general direction, but it was you that he was focused on; your face that his eyes didn't budge from. I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't even notice the rest of us were there."

Lois flushed deeper and nodded "I thought he might be interested, and then I wasn't sure because he never used to be but..."

"But nothing, trust your instincts." Her eyes sparkled and scooting forward in her seat she grinned "So how was it?"

Lois lifted her eyes heavenward and grinned "God Carly, it was fantastic. It was definitely worth taking my clothes off for."

Grinning even wider, the two women sat forward and began to chatter about all things important to females worldwide. The vital statistics of a man who was involved with someone they loved; no matter how enduring or fleeting the relationship may be.

***

As consciousness began to stir, Clark's lips tilted, and his arms automatically reached out to pull Lois closer against him. However, when his hands only encountered air, the smile slipped from his face to be replaced by a light frown. Sweeping his hands out but finding nothing except cold sheets, he opened his eyes reluctantly and confirmed that he was very much alone. Lifting up on one elbow, his eyes travelled around the room, noting that his clothes were piled on the end of the bed, but Lois was nowhere in sight. He couldn't hear the shower running which meant that he wasn't only alone only in the bed, but in the whole room. Lois had disappeared.

Flopping back down with a heavy sigh he stared up at the ceiling. Well so much for the morning after that he'd planned. Tonight he'd try and get Lois to stay at his place, at least then he wouldn't be waking up alone, and she wouldn't have anywhere to run. Hopefully that would also lead her to the realisation that he wasn't going to let them be reduced to furtive meetings in hotel rooms, but instead wanted them to start building a relationship that would last for the rest of their lives.

His thoughts of orange blossom skittered to a halt, changed direction and he began to recite every rich and colourful swear word that he knew. After he'd finished saying them in English, he switched to a couple of other languages, scrubbed his hands hard over his face and sighed again. He couldn't tell her that he wanted them to build a relationship because Lois didn't want a relationship. Most women would be insulted as hell if he said that all he wanted was sex, but not Lois; oh no, she had to be the bloody exception. She'd only been back in his life for one day, and already she was proving to be a damn headache. Well he was going to win this battle and he was going to win Lois. He'd told her last night that he wasn't going to let this be about sex, and the best way to show her that he meant business, was to start by getting her comfortable in his apartment.

Pushing aside the covers, he climbed out of bed, walked into the bathroom, had a quick shower, and was out minutes later. Grimacing with distaste at having to put his rumpled clothes back on, he sighed and began to dress.

***

Getting up from her seat Lois smiled "I actually came to tell you that I won't be around today because I'm going to Smallville with my cousin and Clark to see his mom." At her friends lifted brows, Lois slapped her lightly on the arm "Stop that, I know his mom. Do you mind letting everyone know that I'll catch up with you all at dinner."

Carly nodded and hugged Lois tight "I will but you do realise the other girls are going to want the info, and they're going to pump me for the information."

Lois snorted softly "As if you won't enjoy passing on all the details."

Carly grinned unrepentant "I will and it won't take much pumping from them at all."

She giggled and nodded "But Carl, it's only for a few days and it's not serious so just...." She stopped when her friend held up her hand.

"I know Lo, I don't care what made you cut loose, I'm just glad that you did." She pulled Lois in for another hard hug "I love you and I want you to be happy, so go have fun and we'll catch up tonight, ok?"

Nodding one last time, Lois stepped across the hallway, unlocked the door and stepped inside the room to find that Clark was now awake.

Ok, so this was slightly different to the normal situation but she could handle it. She wasn't nervous, really....at least she hadn't been nervous until he looked up. The casual look on his face didn't detract from the unwavering look in his eyes, which in turn made her feel gooey all over. Damn it! She was grown women, and men did not make her gooey. She knew the score and wasn't going to be suckered in. Taking a deep breath, she smiled back and advanced into the room closing the door behind her.

***

He was in the process of putting on his shoes, when the door opened, Lois walked in and once again his heart rolled over in his chest. She might be a damn headache, but she was HIS damn headache, and that was what counted. Hoping to be casual, but at the same time let her know that he wasn't sorry they'd spent the night together, he smiled "Good morning."

"Morning, how long have you been up?" She asked, taking a seat at the little table.

"Not long, where'd you disappear to?"

"I went to tell one of my friends that I wouldn't be around today since we're going to see your mom."

He nodded, got up, stepped over, and pulled her up into his arms for a quick good morning kiss "What's the time?"

She shrugged and picked up her watch from the table "Just on 7, I'm about to order some breakfast, did you wanna stay and have some?"

He shook his head "No thanks, I've gotta get home and change, I feel pretty icky wearing last night's clothes."

She nodded and smiled "Ok, well I'll see you around 8 then."

He nodded in return, pressed a fleeting kiss against her brow and made his way to the door, but turned back before stepping through "Lois..." When she looked up, he smiled gently "I meant what I said last night."

One brow lifted "Which part?"

"All of it." He saluted and stepped outside closing the door behind him.

***

Lois sighed and shook her head. _All of it_; which meant what exactly? He wasn't sorry they'd slept together, well neither was she. As she'd told him last night, she was in town for a few days, so they should make the most of it. But she hadn't expected him to act....loving towards her, yet he had despite his casual manner.

Clark used to be so serious and sober about romance, but that was years ago and he'd definitely changed from the boy he used to be. She just hoped that he'd changed enough that he could take their liaison in his stride, without feeling the need to waste her time with pretty lies about seeing her once she left Metropolis. If not, then she'd have to tell him that lies were unnecessary, and their time could be much more productively employed in the pursuit of having fun, instead of long useless speeches.

Picking up the room service menu, she re-took her seat, perused the choices available and ordered.

***

Upon returning home Clark had another quick shower, dressed then put the kettle on. While waiting for the water to boil he sat at the kitchen table and thought about Lois. He'd sensed her reserve as soon as she'd stepped into the room. He'd seen the start she'd given at finding him still there, which meant that either she'd expected him to slip away while she was otherwise occupied, or she'd been caught off guard at his casual attitude. He'd also felt the resistance of her lips when he'd kissed her, but didn't know if that was because she'd expected him to feel awkward about their previous nights activities, or if she was hoping that whatever they did only took place under the cover of darkness; but thought that likely it was a combination of both.

He'd told her last night that he wanted to see her when she left Metropolis, he'd told her that he wanted them to be friends, but either she hadn't believed him, or she'd hoped that he was just giving her the usual after sex bullshit that meant nothing, but sounded better than 'thanks for the quick roll in the hay, see you around'.

If she was hoping to put him into a box titled 'sex only' and keep him out of every other part of her life, then he was going to have to do what he'd decided last night. He was going to have to take baby steps to not scare her off, while at the same time, poke, prod and damn well shove until he made room for himself in her life. She wasn't getting rid of him and she wasn't going to chase him away, but he had to admit he was looking forward to the coming battle.

Lois was obviously under the erroneous illusion that she still belonged only to herself. She clearly didn't realise that the pink slip ownership papers had changed hands when he saw her in the restaurant. Without asking he'd gladly handed his over to her that night, and now he wanted an even exchange.

When the kettle boiled he made himself a cup of coffee, some breakfast and after eating walked to his bookcase to pluck out one of Lois' books. He'd admired her work for years, even though the stories she told were harshly unapologetic, gritty and damn sad, he'd also respected the amount of care, detail and compassion the author had put in. Once started, her books were hard to put down. She had a way of drawing the reader in, twisting their emotions up, giving them a good shake and then spitting them out. Quite often her stories were hard to take, but it was only the hardest of hearts that could come away apathetic about the lives that had been taken, for the most flimsy and senseless of reasons. Chloe had put him onto reading Lois' books, but neither of them had known it was her cousin who was the author. Now that he knew, it was almost like Lois had flipped him and Chloe the bird for dismissing her writing for the Inquisitor years before. Smiling in amusement, he wondered if she'd mentally done just that when her first novel had been published.

Flipping past the cover he came to the page that had the name of the publisher, and there under copyright was her name. He'd never paid any attention, he usually skipped that and just read the story, and yet if he'd just taken the time to check, he would have known from the beginning.

He read the dedication and smiled, plucked out another and another. She'd obviously dedicated her books to people who were the closest to her; her dad, her sister, a couple of names he didn't know, and then he saw a dedication that made the tears mist in his eyes. She had dedicated this book to his parents.

He doubted his mom knew, and he was looking forward to seeing the smile on her face when told her. He took a quick look at his watch, grabbed the car keys and left. He was looking forward to a lot of things, and right now it was witnessing his mom's reunion with his future wife for the first time in years.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

The drive to Smallville was full of chatter and laughter, Lois spent the time either half turned in her seat talking to her cousin sitting in the back, or Chloe sat forward pushing her face in the front and all three conversed. The girls caught up with each other, Clark joined in and the atmosphere was light without even a hint of awkwardness.

"We're almost there Lois." She nodded absently and kept talking to her cousin. He grinned in amusement. She really hadn't changed, talking was still something that she liked to do, but this time he was enjoying it.

When he pulled up in front of the house, Lois stopped talking, stepped out of the car and stared. The smile on her face grew wider when his mom appeared at the top of the stairs; the two women stood smiling at each other for a moment, then with a screech that could shatter glass, they ran and hugged each other hard.

Clark turned to smile at Chloe, saw that she also had a huge smile on her face, and after giving the women a little time to talk, he decided it was time to butt in.

"Mom...mom." She waved at him absently and continued chatting but after calling her name several more times, she turned, saw him and Chloe and blushed.

"I'm sorry sweetie." Martha reached over pulled her son into a fierce hug, turned to smile and hug Chloe then turned back to look at her future daughter in law; only to find her looking at the house.

"Does she know?" Martha whispered quietly, but at his quick head shake, she nodded and winked "Well don't worry, Chloe called and asked me this morning to find out if Lois is seeing anyone, so I'll...." She trailed off when Lois turned around and smiled. Linking arms with her, the two women walked her up the stairs and into the house, with Clark and Chloe trailing behind.

Clark wondered how he could stop his mom from questioning Lois. He no longer needed help to find out if she was seeing anyone as he now knew the answer, but decided it was best to just let it go. Maybe his mom could casually question Lois and ferret out some answers, which in turn would help him to understand exactly what kind of ghosts he had to contend with.

***

Lois looked around the farm house and shook her head in wonder; being here made her feel like a girl again. Standing outside earlier had been lovely, but when she'd stepped inside the farm house, memory after memory had rushed over her; seeing so many familiar things made it hard to believe that she'd been gone for so long. The furniture had changed but only a little, some of the photos were still the same one's that she remembered, while others were new, but overall the house still felt as warm and homey, as the very first time she'd stepped inside it.

She turned, looked at the group of people standing behind her and smiled "It's nice to be back."

"Oh honey it's so nice to have you back." Martha smiled tearfully and pulled Lois into a hug once again.

Lois hugged her back then pulled out of her arms and shook her head once again "It's funny but it really feels like I never left. I expect to find Shelby beside me, Clark retreating to his loft to brood and everything to be the same way it used to be; but it's not, is it?"

Martha shook her head "No, a lot of time has passed since then, but seeing you here again, it's hard to believe that you haven't been with us the whole time."

"It's like that for me too...Shelby?" Lois questioned softly and looked around.

"Shelby died a few years ago." Clark put in quietly and saw sad understanding in Lois' eyes.

She sighed and nodded "I expected it, but I hate hearing it all the same."

Hoping to dispel the gloomy atmosphere, Martha gestured to the table "I know it's early, but I thought if we have lunch now, then the three of you can take your time looking over the town, and come back for afternoon tea before you have to leave."

"I'd like that, thanks Mrs Kent."

"Martha." She corrected with a smile, leading the way to the table.

"Martha." Lois agreed and took a seat.

Conversation during lunch was minimal other than requests for something to be passed, but once all were fed and full, the chatter began once again.

"So what have you been doing with yourself sweetie, are you a journalist?" Martha asked with a smile.

Lois grinned and shook her head "No, I do have a journalism degree but I'm a writer."

"She writes true crime novels mom; and she's damn good." Clark inclined his head in Lois' direction then continued before she could speak "And here's something I only learnt this morning when I looked through her books; Lois dedicated one of her novels to you and dad."

Lois blushed when Chloe turned to her and grinned "I didn't know that Lo."

She coughed lightly in reply "It was my first book."

Martha picked up her hand and squeezed it gently "Oh Lois, I wish I'd known. That has to be the most beautiful thing anyone's done for Jonathan and me."

Lois smiled and squeezed her hand in return "I was so grateful to both of you; it was the two of you that made me realise I could be a lot more than just a college dropout who served coffee at the Talon. Mr Kent made me his campaign manager, you made me your chief of staff; and you have no idea just how much it meant to me that you both believed I could do great things, when I didn't even believe in myself back then."

"I always knew that you could and so did Jonathan." Martha replied quietly, squeezing her hand once again "I'd like to read the book."

Lois chewed her lip uncertainly for a moment before confessing softly "Um, it's not a nice story Martha, it's pretty intense and unpleasant."

"I'd like to read it anyway; I'm pleased as punch to know a published author, and I can't wait to tell all my friends." Martha grinned in pride.

Lois smiled and nodded "I'll send you a copy, but just so you know, I consider you to be this published authors mentor."

"If you don't stop I'm going to cry." Martha admonished gently but couldn't suppress the flush of pleasure at the younger woman's words.

Letting out a watery gurgle herself, Lois nodded once again.

Retrieving the tray of coffee, Clark brought it back to the table, everyone helped themselves, and deciding it was time to gently feel out the younger woman, Martha began to slowly pull out details.

"Clark told me you were divorced Lois, I'm sorry sweetie." Martha said softly in regret.

Lois bobbed her head sadly in agreement "Yeah so was I; he's a great guy, I'm a great girl, we just weren't so great together."

"How long have you been divorced?" Chloe asked casually.

"Almost two years, and I really am ok about it. I'm not sorry, just regretful that it didn't work out; that's what really hurts y'know?"

Chloe and Clark nodded in understanding while Martha gave all three smiles of sympathy "Are you dating or seeing anyone in particular at the moment?"

Lois shook her head "No, I go on dates but it's just casual; I'm not interested in getting involved with anyone."

"Well maybe one day you'll be ready to try again." Martha put in carefully.

"I doubt it." Her voice was soft, but all heard the iron clad certainty resonate in her tone.

Hearing the tone Martha felt distressed, not only for her son but for Lois as well. Reaching out, she laid a hand over Lois' free one "You're still a young sweetie; don't close yourself off to love just because things didn't work out the first time. I'm going to tell you what I told Clark when he got divorced; I know it must hurt and the thought of trying again is scary, but one day when you least expect it, you will find the right someone, and then you'll be ready."

Lois smiled genially but instead of replying, she sipped her coffee and looked around the room.

The three shared a swift look of concern. Not wishing to upset the younger woman, but feeling unbearably sad that Lois wasn't willing to open herself to the possibility of love again, Martha tried once more "It's not too late for love sweetie, it's never too late." She put in firmly and patted Lois' hand before sweeping her eyes over all three "I believe your time will come; all three of you will get another shot at happiness."

"I like to think so." Chloe put in cheerfully while Clark nodded in agreement. Lois however, sighed and gave a lopsided smile "Not for me Martha, I'm never going to put myself out there again, but thank you anyway."

Lois sipped her coffee and hoped the conversation was over. When her phone rang she let out a silent sigh of relief, and addressing the table in general excused herself, pulled the phone from her purse, and checked the caller ID. There was no name, and not seeing a familiar number, she shrugged and clicked "Hello." At the sound of Abra's voice, she smiled "Can you hang on for a minute?" At the affirmative reply she shot a quick look at the tables occupants before getting to her feet "I'm just going to take this outside ok?" They all nodded and with a quick step she left the farm house to sit on the front porch.

Once she was gone the three turned to each other.

"She's clearly scared of being hurt again and I don't blame her, but...." Chloe broke off and blew out a deep breath "What are you gonna do?"

Clark sipped his coffee, looked at the two women and smiled lightly "I'm going to show her that she doesn't need to be scared, because I'll be there to catch her anytime she falls. I'm going to prove to Lois that I am right the man for her, and when she's ready I'm going to marry her."

"Well if anyone can do it you can." Martha smiled tearfully, then reached over and hugged her son.

"And at least now you know there's no competition for her affections." Chloe put in softly.

He grinned "I already knew, I asked her again when I took her back to her hotel last night; I also told her everything about myself."

"Talk about not letting the grass grow under your feet, but it's probably a good thing. By telling Lois everything straight away, you're proving to her upfront that you trust her. She must also have a pretty good idea that you're interested; I mean let's face it, telling someone you're an alien with super-powers, isn't the kind of thing you just blab out to anyone." Chloe replied and Martha nodded, but when Clark's face flushed, the women lifted their brows in query.

He rubbed the side of his face and confessed "I think she had a pretty good idea I was interested in her when I um..." he coughed lightly "...when I spent the night with her."

The women's mouths fell open; they turned to each other and back to Clark again completely stumped for what to say.

He smiled sheepishly "I didn't intend it to happen, I asked if I could talk to her, so we sat in her room and I told her everything. As I was leaving I kissed her, and then....well you can guess what happened next."

"That was fast." Chloe shook her head in stupefaction "You're not kids but....that was fast." She repeated dumbfounded.

Martha nodded in agreement "Well you're both adults so I'm not going to say anything; in fact I prefer not to think about it at all."

"Are you disappointed mom?" Clark asked softly.

She shook her head "No sweetie, as I said before you're both adults and I know your intentions are honourable, but as your mom, I don't want to think of my son...." She broke off and smiled "As you're mom, I prefer ignorance in these matters."

He nodded in understanding "You'll both be pleased to know that I made sure Lois knew it wasn't just a one night stand. I told her that I wanted us to be friends, and that I was going to see her when she went home." His lips quirked into a small smile "She didn't believe me at first, but I wasn't going to let it rest until she understood that it wasn't just a fling for me. I'm going to win her heart, and I'm going to prove she doesn't need to be frightened of trying again; and I'm not going to give up until the day she agrees to marry me."

Chloe grinned and wiggled her brows "Well I'm guessing after last night, Lois won't be thinking of you as the annoying boy she used to know; so my money's riding on you."

"Mine too." Martha put in then quickly held up her hand "But I still don't want to think about it."

"Don't worry mom, I won't tell you any details, but I might come to you and Chloe for ideas or advice on occasion." He looked between the two women hopefully; they looked at each other, grinned, turned back to him and nodded firmly.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

After spending a couple of hours driving around the town, stopping at one or two places and having a good look around, the three returned to the farm for afternoon tea.

"The town's hardly changed at all." Lois remarked wonderingly.

"Yes, not much tends to change around here very quickly." Martha agreed with a quiet smile.

"Is your loft still there or have you gotten rid of it?" She asked turning to Clark questioningly.

He grinned in reply "It's still there; mom doesn't need it for anything so she's left it as it used to be." He paused and held up a finger "It's changed a little bit, the desk is gone, the couch has been replaced and one or two things are different but it's still the loft."

Martha nodded "I thought about it getting rid of it, but then thought; why bother, I have the whole house to myself so I left it alone."

Lois smiled "Well I'd like to go up and see it, but is it covered in cobwebs and dust?"

Martha laughed and shook her head "No it's clean so you don't have to worry."

Nodding her head Lois rose to excuse herself and found Clark had gotten to his feet as well "I'll come with you Lo." Without giving her time to answer, he turned and asked politely "Chloe, did you wanna join us?"

She was tempted to say yes, if only to see how he'd find a way to stop her, but let him off the hook with a quick head shake "Nah, I'll stay here and keep your mom company."

He nodded, let her see the appreciation in his eyes for her refusal, and with a casual wave, walked to the door and outside with Lois.

Once in the loft, Lois turned in a circle and smiled "Even the telescope is still here; why haven't you taken it to your apartment?"

He shrugged unconcerned "I don't know; it belongs here and if I wanna be closer to the sky, I just fly up there."

"As high as the stars?" She asked doubtfully.

"I can, but my vision's good enough to see pretty long distances." He walked over, slipped an arm around her waist and nuzzled the side of her neck "You know what we never did in the loft....make out."

"Sure we did, just not with each other." She laughed in reply.

"I think we should rectify that situation." He murmured, pushing her hair aside and trailing his lips up the back of her neck.

"I think we shouldn't."

"Why." He breathed quietly against her ear, and felt the small shiver that travelled through her body.

"Because..."

"Because why?"

"Clark we...." Her voice was lost when he turned her around, and pressed his lips against hers cutting off her answer. She held herself stiffly for a moment before melting against him.

Wrapping his arms tight around her waist, he crushed her gently closer, then swung her up into his arms and with their mouths still fused, walked to the couch and sat down with her cradled in his lap.

Their lips met and parted, came back together, his hands roamed over her back, her fingers slid through his hair, as their tongues continued to duel in one long lazy waltz. He trailed one hand from her back, down her legs, found the bottom of her sundress, and slipped it underneath to stroke along the warm smooth skin of her calf and up to her knee. His palm cupped the ball of her knee for a moment before continuing on its path, gliding ever upwards; coming to rest possessively on her thigh.

Lois dragged her mouth free and while gasping for air, tugged his t-shirt up and off. He moved forward, and crushed her mouth with his once again while the hand on her back slid the zipper of her dress down to her waist. Releasing her thigh, he slipped both hands into the open sides of her dress, smoothing his palms down, to caress the soft velvety skin of her lower back.

When their mouths parted, they looked at each other with half veiled eyes, panting little gasps tore from their throats but their eyes stayed locked.

"Do you think you're mom and Chloe will come out here?"

He shook his head, she shrugged her shoulders so the top of her dress feel free and reaching back lifted his fingers to the clasp of her bra "Well, since there's no one around...." She trailed off suggestively, licked her lips and sent him a sultry look from under her lashes.

His fingers flicked open the snap, his hands moved up to smooth the straps down her arms until her breasts were free to his hungry gaze, and that was all he needed. His hands rose, cupped the warm full globes, his thumbs rubbed over and around the nipples, circling and teasing the buds until they were hard and pouting for attention then lifting her up, he enclosed the tip in the warm cavern of his mouth, sucking lightly then strongly, enjoying the breathless panting of Lois' voice in his ear.

Rolling her onto the couch under him, he continued to torment her breasts then gently rubbed his cheek over them, closing his eyes tight to reign himself in. So much for his vaunted self control, hadn't he said that he now controlled his hormones? What a joke. He only had to kiss Lois and his hormones sat up and begged like a puppy straining at the leash. Hoping to cool their ardour, he continued to hold her close, but refused to give into temptation. However, when his eyes opened, he exhaled loudly and began to count to 100 very slowly. Biting hard into his lip, he managed to stop himself from swabbing his tongue over the tumescent bud that was in direct line with his mouth.

Hoping that his wavering control was held in check enough that he could speak without squeaking, he opened his mouth, closed it, and cleared his throat "Will you stay at my place tonight?" When she didn't answer, he lifted his head and saw the indecision on her face "Lois?"

She hesitated before nodding "Yeah ok. I'm having dinner with my friends but I can come over later; you'll have to tell me where you live though."

"I can join you all for dinner." He replied quietly, brushing the hair back from her brow.

She shook her head in reply "You won't enjoy it, we'll be talking about things and people that you won't know, and you know how boring that is."

"You'll be there, so I'll enjoy it." He corrected softly.

She shook her head again "No, you'll just be uncomfortable."

"I will or you will?"

"Clark."

"Lois I said that I wanted us to be friends, and the only way we can do that is by spending time together." He pointed out logically.

She shrugged but didn't answer, and swearing silently under his breath he lifted them both back to a sitting position, pulled his t-shirt back on, and turned to find her snapping her bra closed and straightening her dress. When she struggled with the zipper, he turned her around, slid it back up then turned her to face him. Running his fingers through his hair he sighed "You didn't believe me." He stated flatly, knowing that his earlier guess had been right.

She shrugged again "I figure it was well you know....just a line."

"Why, I told you that I wanted to see you when you left, I told you that it wasn't just sex, and I told you that I wanted us to be friends; so why would you think it was just a line?"

She smoothed her dress and began to rise, but his hand grasped her wrist and kept her seated beside him "Lois why did you think it was just a line?"

She still didn't answer but when he continued to press her further, she finally rolled her eyes and held out a hand giving him the logic of her reasoning "A man will say most anything to get a woman into bed, if he's already gotten her there, he'll say anything just about anything to keep getting some. If a man wants to be friends with a woman, genuine friends then the odds are pretty good that he's gay. If he's not then more than likely he figures by pretending to be sensitive, and caring about her from the neck up, it's because he believes it's the fastest way to get her to fall onto her back."

"And you thought I said I wanted us to be friends, just so that you'd continue sleep with me?" He asked pointedly.

"Yes." She confirmed with a quick nod.

"We haven't seen each other in years Lois, but surely you know I don't work that way." He reproved stiffly; feeling hurt that she'd think he'd treat her so callously.

"Actually Clark, you work exactly that way." She replied without hesitation.

He didn't know whether to feel angry or insulted that she'd think he would behave like that "I...what, I don't lie to get women into bed Lois."

"I didn't say that you lied Clark."

"Then exactly what are you saying?" He asked outright

She looked at him and asked casually "Name all the women you're friends with."

"Chloe's been a friend of mine for years; Lana and I were friends before we got divorced, no actually I'm wrong, we were friends before we got married but after...."

Lois cut him off bluntly "You were friends with Chloe but that's only because you weren't attracted to her. You used her to prop up your ego when Lana slapped you down, but otherwise you weren't interested in her romantically; so Chloe was safe." She cocked her head and mocked lightly "As for Lana, you can wrap it up in as many pretty speeches as you like, but they'll all be ineffective. The bottom line is you wanted to get into her pants, and figured being her _friend_ was the way to achieve that. Likewise as you were the President of the Lana fan club, she was quite happy to string you along for years, basking in your adoration; end of story." She summed up candidly by slashing her hand through the air before continuing "You said she was your friend, you fostered the illusion she was your friend, but that's because you figured if you were _sensitive_, and encouraged her to turn to you, eventually you'd achieve the goal of making her yours. But you never had a true desire for Lana's friendship Clark, and if you're honest you'll admit that I'm right."

"I wasn't the President, Lana was." He replied sulkily, causing Lois' lips to twitch. Blowing out a deep breath he nodded "Ok, with Lana I always had the end goal in mind of making her my girlfriend, but Chloe and I are friends Lois."

"I'm not saying that you aren't, but you can't deny that you used her when you were younger Clark. Lana was slapping you down every other day, you needed to feel wanted by someone, and Chloe was there. She had a crush on you, and built you up with her adoration which gave you the strength for your next round with Lana. You and Chloe were friends I'm not disputing that, but it was also a convenient arrangement that suited both of you. You needed her to stroke your ego, and Chloe hoped that one day you'd fancy her the way you did Lana, so your friendship was actually a two-fold arrangement that wasn't entirely without motive." Lois lifted her brows and waited patiently.

He sighed again and nodded slightly "Yeah ok, but I've changed Lois; Chloe and I are friends now, real friends. She stopped idolising me, and I stopped using her to prop up my ego a long time ago."

She smiled lopsided "I'm glad, I really am; I can't say I liked the way you treated my little cousin."

"I don't blame you but I apologised to Chloe for doing it a long time ago. She's been a true friend helping me through the good times and the bad; and I like to think I've been there for her in return."

"I believe you have been because I can see that she cares about you, and I don't mean romantically." She nodded and patted his arm "If you weren't worth bothering with at all, more than likely Chloe would have dropped you like a hot rock when she got over her crush. After all what's the point of hanging on to a guy, when you don't care one way or the other anymore, but she hasn't done that. Obviously whatever she saw in you years ago has now mellowed into a deep regard that's clearly reciprocated by you, and held your friendship together when a lot of others might have failed."

"I do love Chloe, I always will, but only as a friend Lois."

She nodded in accord "I know and I'd say that she feels the same way now too. I don't get the impression that Chloe regards you as her a potential anything anymore, just a friend."

He nodded slowly "Um I know that we had our differences Lo, but I think we were friends as well; not great friends true, but we were." He put in quietly.

She shook her head in denial "No we really weren't. As you weren't interested in me romantically, you didn't bother wasting your time trying to cultivate a friendship with me, like you did with Lana; and as I wasn't crushing on you like Chloe was, I really didn't give a damn. Our only connection was Chloe and my living here at the farm, but in most respects we annoyed each other more than anything. We somewhat got along, we had our good and bad times, but neither of us sought each other's company. I thought you were ok but a major pain in the ass, and I have no doubt you felt the same way about me." Her brow cocked again, he sighed harshly and nodded "I didn't think of you after I left Smallville Clark...." She frowned lightly and corrected herself "...no sorry I'm wrong. When Chloe told me Lana was alive, I knew your soap opera bullshit would start up again, and I was just grateful to no longer be here for it. But other than that I never gave you so much as a second thought, and I'm sure the same was true for you as well."

He raked a hand through his hair and bobbed his head reluctantly "And that's what you expected to happen this time too."

She nodded in confirmation "Yeah, I figured that we'd have a fling, and then forget each other as quickly and totally as we did the last time I left."

"I don't want that Lois, I really don't." He reached down and grasped her hand "You said that we could take things slowly, no expectations or demands, were you lying about that?"

"I was trying to gracefully give you an out, so you didn't feel obligated to pretend you wanted to see me after I left." She paused and smiled slightly "It's ok if a short fling is all you want Clark, I really am ok with that. I just prefer to know where I stand up front; and to be honest, a fling without ties is all that I'm interested in myself."

He looked at her silently and shook his head "I don't want an out Lois, I want us to be friends, and I want to see you after you leave Metropolis."

She shook her hand free and ran it through her hair "Clark, if you really wanted us to be friends, you wouldn't have said yes to the sex." When his mouth opened she held up a hand "I know that men and women can be friends, I think; hell I'm not sure but..."

"So when you asked me if we'd be having sex, and I said of course we'll make love; you were testing me?" He cut in and asked directly.

She nodded "Yeah, call me cynical if you like, but if all you really wanted was friendship, you would have said no."

"I said that I wasn't only interested in your body Lois, I never said that I only wanted friendship." He sighed and picked up her hand again "I do want you; I'd say that's pretty obvious by now, but I also want us get to know each other outside of the bedroom."

She looked at him silently "But that's the problem don't you see. If we keep this on the surface level only, then when I leave on Wednesday we can say goodbye, and go our separate ways without a backward glance. But if we muddy it with friendship, it won't be so easy."

"I don't want to keep this on the surface, and I don't want easy." He brought their joint hands to his lips and kissed the tip of her fingers "Just give us a chance, please."

"The one thing I said last night that I really meant, is that I don't want a serious relationship." She finished softly.

He nodded slowly "I know but I'm willing to take it slow and see how things go."

She chewed her lip for a moment and finally nodded "Ok."

He searched her eyes and smiled "I'm not going to let you trip me up again, so I'm asking; do you want us to make love...."

"Have sex." She cut in softly.

He paused for a heartbeat, inclined his head very lightly but instead of re-wording anything, deliberately finished his question "....or do you want me to keep my hands to myself?"

She searched his expression, but he kept his face completely blank, hoping that she believed, he'd agreed with her. When she nodded slowly, he let out a silent sigh of relief that he'd managed to fool her enough that she felt satisfied with whatever it was that she'd found in his eyes.

Her lips lifted at the corners "It was pretty good last night and I'd certainly like a repeat but...."

"You said it was the best sex of your life." He cut in smugly hoping to lighten the atmosphere, but didn't bother to suppress the grin on his face.

Lois laughed and rolled her eyes "Oh please, I hadn't had sex in six months, believe me I was ready to screw a doorknob; I would have said the same thing to anyone."

"A doorknob!" He silently shook with mirth, and began to guffaw when she smacked his arm.

"I was trying to be lady like but that just slipped out."

Letting out a howl, he grabbed her into a hug, rocking with laughter. When he finally calmed down, he wiped the tears from his eyes, pressed his lips against hers and smiled devilishly "I'm gonna make you eat your words; y'know."

"Which ones?" She asked with lifted brow.

"That you would have said it to anyone; Ms Lane I'm going to make you eat every single word."

She grinned in return "I'm looking forward to it."

"So am I." He cleared his throat, and asked politely "Now can I join you and your friends for dinner tonight?"

She chuffed out a laugh and nodded in defeat "Ok."

Bending forward he pressed his lips lightly against hers once again then grinned "Why don't you check out of the hotel and stay with me until you leave. It's only for a couple of days, but it'll save all the back and forth."

"You're pushing it Kent."

"I know but I figure playing the nice guy won't work with a woman who's so pushy herself." He retorted unrepentant, and after a little more coaxing managed to get her agreement to stay with him.

They returned to the house, and stayed to visit with his mom for a short while longer before leaving, but not before Martha obtained the promise from Lois to visit again soon, and Lois in return obtained the agreement from Martha, to visit and stay with her in Seattle the following month.

***

Contrary to Lois' expectations Clark enjoyed the dinner with her friends enormously. The women and their husbands were warm gregarious people who included him in their conversations, and made room for him in their fold. To his infinite delight he fit right into their group without a hitch, but was well aware that it was Lois' acceptance of him, that gave him their approval. He noted that Lois' girlfriends had checked him out thoroughly, turned to look at her several times, and when they planned a shopping expedition the following day, he had no doubt, that he would be the topic of discussion.

After dinner was over he shook hands with the men, wished the ladies good night and ushered Lois into her room, smiling in satisfaction when she began to pack her things.

When she was done, she turned to him and smiled uncertainly "Are you sure you want me to stay with you?"

He nodded and not giving her any time to think up arguments against it, grabbed her case in one hand, slipped his hand to the back of her neck and pulled her to him for a quick hard kiss "I'm sure." Grabbing her free hand in his, he began to lead her from the room.

She tugged her hand free, grabbed her makeup case, and gave one last look around the room "I hope that I haven't forgotten anything."

He swept the room with both his normal and x-ray vision and shook his head "There's nothing Lo, let's go home." When she hesitated, he deliberately let out a long dramatic sigh and rolled his eyes "Let's go to my place."

Lois grinned, and taking his outstretched hand, let him lead her from the room.


	9. Chapter 9

As mentioned before I'm a big fan of L&C the New Adventures of S'man, so you'll find bits of that show scattered throughout this story. In this update I've used one or two lines to suit my purposes, so if you're familiar with the show you'll pick it up straight away.

Linda

**

**Chapter 9**

Lois smiled as the lift carried her up to the newsroom floor. She was looking forward to having lunch with her cousin. She'd spent most of yesterday shopping with and being grilled by her friends about Clark, then spent the remainder of the day watching him on the television.

She knew his plan had been to assist the JLA the next time they needed him, thus making his grand entrance to the world, and in the meantime to continue to do as he'd done for years and help incognito. However, his plans had been foiled by her. Although she hadn't meant to make him expose himself intentionally, when she'd told him afterwards that it was a good thing, and way past time for him to come out of the closet anyway, the look on his face at her phrasing, had caused her to scream with laughter.

He'd pointedly informed her that she'd only been back in his life for two days, and already his mom was on his case berating him to look after her better; she'd hadn't dignified his words with a response, just sniffed haughtily in reply. In return he'd hooked an arm around her waist, grinned and finished by saying that at least this time she hadn't conned him out of his bed, this time he'd conned her into it first.

Leaning against the lift wall, her mind took wings and flew back to the previous days' events that had taken place, thus beginning the start of Clark's new career. She'd been so preoccupied, talking and laughing with her friends that she hadn't paid any attention to what was going on around her, and had stepped off the kerb, straight into traffic. The surrounding screams, blaring horns, and screech of brakes made her hair stand up on end. When she turned around all she could see was a monster bearing down on her, and stood there completely paralysed. One side of her brain screamed at her to move, the other told her that she wouldn't make it either way. Her life didn't have time to flash before her eyes, but she did have time to know she was going to finish the day in the morgue, when suddenly Clark was there wearing the suit his mom had made for him. He plucked her up, swept her behind him, put out his hand and stopped the 18 wheeler cold.

She was grateful; even more so when she realised that her life wasn't going to end so ignominiously. Admittedly her life ending was a total bummer in itself, but doing a dump in her underpants because she was terrified, was not the way she wanted to be remembered.

Even though he'd told her what he could do, that he was virtually indestructible, hearing about it and seeing it in action were two different things, and she'd been just as stunned as everyone else on the street. She'd stared at him astonished, turned to look at the semi, saw Clark's hand print embedded into the grill, and turned back to stare at him once again.

She was still blinking rapidly when he picked her up, flew her up into the sky, hugged her tight, and asked if she was ok. For one of the few times in her life, she could only nod and looked down to find everyone was shading their eyes, looking up at them. He smiled in relief, kissed her quickly, rubbed her shoulder said a few more comforting words then flew her back down to her friends.

The street was dead still and totally calm, almost like a vacuum had sucked all the air out, leaving a complete hush behind. People were staring but no one was talking; the driver looked between the front grill of his truck, to Clark's hand, his mouth opened once or twice but no words issued forth. It was the only time she'd heard such a deafening silence in the city of Metropolis. Suddenly realising that Clark was standing taut as a bow string beside her, waiting in dread for the crowd's reaction; she gave herself a quick mental shake to snap out of it, lifted up on her tip-toes, pressed a kiss against his check in thanks and smiled. Like a huge tidal, every voice on the street began calling out in excitement, she could hear words like amazing and incredible; the combination of mixed voices was almost as deafening as the silence moments ago. People were smiling, shaking their heads in awe, but one thing was clear, no one was frightened. She saw Clark relax before he began to float upwards and with a smile and final wave to all, flew away leaving only a slight gust of wind in his wake.

Her girlfriends couldn't decide if they wanted to ask her if she was alright, how it felt to fly, or wonder in speculation about who the mystery man was. After waving off their worry, she made an excuse that she wasn't in the mood for any more shopping and understanding they parted ways. She'd looked down, noted that her hands were still clutching the bags with all she'd purchased that day and shook her head. Well at least almost dying, and being flown up into the sky hadn't robbed her of all sense; this stuff had cost her a fortune, and she would have been mightly pissed off had she lost any of it.

While walking back to his apartment she saw crowds gathered around an electronics store, and when she squeezed forward, saw that it was the TV screens all depicting Clark saving and helping, in what was obviously China that had captured everyone's attention. He was lifting up beams of steel, huge piles of concrete and tossing them aside like lollipops, ensuring the rescue personal could get to those who needed help. The cameras kept swinging back and forth over the pile of rubble, the people lying on the ground waiting for attention, but always moving back to show Clark flying in and out of the building with people in his arms, going back for others, or pushing aside rubble like it was a pesky fly in his way.

Smiling in understanding at everyone's riveted attention to the screens, she returned to Clark's apartment and after a quick shower, sat on the couch in the living room, switched on the TV and wasn't surprised to find he'd become the number one news headline that day. She'd spent the remainder of the afternoon either watching footage of him zipping around the world, or looking on the internet to see what people were saying about him.

He'd clearly decided that as he'd already exposed himself to all and sundry in Metropolis, it was time to show off his powers to the world, and was now flying around saving anyone and anything that was breathing.

There was news footage and pictures of him flashing on every channel, he was all over the internet and speculation was running rife. The one thing everyone wanted to know was his name and why he was here.

When he returned to the apartment several hours later, the adrenaline was clearly still running hot in his veins. He'd come in the door, found her watching the news; which was of course all about him, said hello, took a quick shower, came back out and asked if she was ok. She'd barely had time to nod before he was kissing her, groping soon followed, and before she knew it they were both naked. They had sex twice before he let her up for air, then she'd all but crawled on her hands and knees to the shower, he'd followed and they were at it again.

They were lying on the shower floor in a puddle of goo, when she finally had the breath to tell him that his message machine was full of calls, and he'd better start calling people back before they called him once again.

He smiled and his hands began to wander when she'd further told him to forget it. If he wanted another go, he was going to have to feed her first. He'd zipped out, bought Chinese food, they'd eaten and the glint was once again back in his eyes when the phone rang. However, as it was his mom's voice issuing from the machine, he couldn't ignore it, so while he was chatting, she wrapped up the leftover's, put them in the fridge and had begun to wipe down the table when she felt his arms slip around her waist. It didn't take a Rhodes Scholar to figure out what he wanted; the unmistakeable evidence poked her in the bottom and gave her the first clue.

After that she told him that she needed yet another shower, and when he smiled, she shook her head and told him that her intention was to actually get clean. He'd given in gracefully, stepped into the bathroom, had a quick shower himself, stepped out a minute later and swept out a hand indicating the room was all hers. While she was relaxing under the hot spray, he returned the calls he'd received from friends, and an hour later they'd retreated to bed to sleep. Well that had been the object but it certainly hadn't been on the agenda; if she'd gotten any sleep last night it wasn't much, but she sure as hell wasn't complaining.

Rolling her shoulders, the smile on her face turned into a grin, but when the lift dinged and the doors slid open, she sobered her face into a 'looking forward to having lunch with my cousin' expression, as opposed to a smug 'I got laid, nailed and banged repeatedly last night' visage.

She'd no sooner stepped into the newsroom when she heard the yelling, and never being one to wait politely for an invitation, she followed the sound to the conference room, where it appeared that every reporter who worked for the Planet was currently stationed. The office was open plan, so there weren't any walls to mask the sound, along with that the conference room doors were standing open, possibly because there were too many people and not enough room, and as there were panes of glass instead of solid walls, she could not only hear the loud voice, but see that every reporter including her cousin and Clark were either shifting their shoulders uncomfortably, or wiggling guiltily as the tirade went on.

"Now I wanna know why not even one single Daily Planet reporter has managed to get an exclusive interview with this mystery man?" Perry White bellowed impatiently, giving everyone the fish eye.

"No other paper or news crew has managed to get an interview either Chief." When she heard the voice and saw Jimmy Olsen, Lois smiled fondly in remembrance at some of the antics the two of them had gotten up to before she'd left. However, she couldn't stop from wincing internally when Perry's gaze zeroed in on him. She saw Clark and Chloe shake their heads sorrowfully, noted the other reporters shifted their eyes, hoping not to get noticed and observed Jimmy shrink further into his seat "Olsen, you're a photographer, why haven't you gotten me any pictures of this man?"

"Um I have chief, remember?" Jimmy asked in a small voice and shrunk down a little further in his seat when Perry grumbled.

"You call those pictures; my nephew could have taken better photos with his old box brownie." Perry turned, once again looked at all the reporters gathered around the room and barked out "Now, I wanna know what this man's name is, where he comes from, what he's doing here, are his intentions good or is he just trying to soften us up, and I want the Daily Planet to be the paper that gets those answers first; **clear**!"

Lois glanced at Clark again and unable to help herself piped up "Call him Superman?"

"Who said that?" Perry demanded.

Clark's head shot up, he turned to the doorway but unable to see anything past the mass of bodies, x-rayed through and saw Lois. He nodded slightly at Chloe's whisper, indicating that yes it was Lois, and nodded again when she muttered that her cousin just couldn't help herself; Lois would always be a poke nose.

Like the Red Sea parting for the Children of Israel, all the reporters in front of her stepped aside, Lois took a few steps forward and into the conference room "I did, and just in case you didn't hear it the first time; I said to call him Superman."

"And why should we do that?" Perry asked politely.

"Because it suits him, and I just suggested it." She replied confidently.

"And who are you?"

"Lois Lane, I'm the woman Superman saved yesterday." She waved her hand impatiently when his mouth opened "Yeah, yeah I know, he saved a lot of people, but I'm the first person he saved. I'm also the woman he flew up into the sky and talked with; ask anyone that was there, they all saw it."

"And what if I don't wanna call him Superman?" Perry growled but she heard the interest in his voice, and decided that two could play this game.

She sent a fleeting look at her cousin and Clark, looked down at her nails, gave a blasé shrug, then looked at Perry once again "Fine, don't use it, but I'll just go now and slap a copyright on the name Superman, and when you've run out of ideas and decide you wanna use the name Superman, you'll have to ask my permission first, and pay me a huge bundle of money every time you print it."

She heard feet shifting all around, a couple of squeaks, glanced sideways and noticed that Jimmy was looking at her with a mixture of awe and fear for having the brass nerve to talk to his boss that way, noted that Clark and Chloe were once again shaking their heads in sorrow, but this time at her and rolled her eyes lightly.

Perry huffed and grumbled impatiently "Now hang on, I never said I didn't like it." He paused and looked at her closely "But why Superman, you must have a reason."

She flicked her eyes to the side and felt her lips quirk up "Well what are you going to call him; Mr Puny-verse. He's not some 90 pound weakling y'know. Besides you can't use his alien name, it's too unpronounceable."

"How do you know he's an alien?" Perry asked suspiciously.

"Actually to be precise, he prefers the title 'Intergalactic Traveller', even though he's never travelled anywhere but here apparently." She corrected impishly.

Perry rolled his eyes and shook his head "Intergalactic Traveller indeed, it seems that even the aliens are into using the PC words these days. Have you ever heard the like?" He asked rhetorically.

Clark opened his mouth but shut it without speaking when Chloe knocked his knee with hers.

"Oh I know; what's the universe coming to?" Shaking her head sadly in agreement with Perry, Lois coughed away the tickle in her throat, ignored Clark's slight glower and continued "Anyway, do you really think any human man can do the things he can?" She asked politely and when Perry shook his head, she inclined hers in turn "Neither did I. So when he flew me up into the sky after rescuing me yesterday, I not only asked him if he was an alien, but also what his name was."

"And why should he tell you instead of anyone else?" Perry drawled questioningly.

"Because I asked him, instead wasting time in useless speculation." She replied simply.

"And what'd he say?" Clark asked cordially, ignoring Chloe's mutter to shut up.

Lois turned to him and asked innocently "What'd he say about what?"

"What did he say his alien; sorry....his intergalactic name was?" He clarified slowly, and felt the tickle of Chloe's foot connecting with his ankle bone.

Lois smiled evilly and knowing that he shouldn't have baited her, Clark mentally winced and braced himself for what was coming.

"It sounded like complete gobbledygook, but let me think ...." She tapped her chin and knowing she was the centre of attention, smiled calmly and lied through her teeth "I can't quite remember it precisely, but it was something like 'choy-chum-chingy-choo-choy-choy'." Chloe lowered her head and began to snigger, Clark began to cough and with a genial smile Lois finished "I'm telling you, the Planet he comes from wasn't into names like John Smith." Turning back to Perry she smiled again "So if you wanna call him by his alien name go right ahead, but, I think Superman works much better."

Perry nodded slowly and grinned "You know I'm liking the name Superman more every minute, and at least the Daily Planet will have the honour of giving this man a name." He turned to Clark and rolled his eyes "Kent do you need some water?"

"No sir." Clark squeaked out, hoping to god he wouldn't laugh out loud. He knocked Chloe lightly with his arm to stop her snickering, which wasn't helping him retain his composure.

"Right, we have a name and I wanna see it in big headlines on the front page of our evening edition; and I wanna see it under an exclusive interview with the man." Perry eyed his reporters once again "I DON'T want to read about Superman in another newspaper got it!"

They all nodded obediently, and once again unable to help herself, Lois spoke up "You wanna beat out all the other papers, and get a story on Superman out first; I'll write it, but it's gonna cost you." She smiled at Perry nicely, and lowered her lashes to send a fleeting look in her cousin and Clark's direction.

"And why should I pay you to write a story, when I have a whole room full of reporter's right here at my command." Perry asked politely with lifted brow.

"Why wouldn't you? Not only am I professional writer, but I just happen to have a journalism degree, and from what I saw on the television yesterday, I'm also the only person that Superman talked to afterwards. He saved other people, but he didn't stick around to chat with them, yet he flew me up into the sky and we did talk for a few minutes. Plus time is ticking away, so unless someone gets an interview with him fast, you won't make deadline for the evening edition." She paused and added cheerfully "Of course, if you're not interested, I can always take the story to the Star."

Perry's face became scarlet "The Star....that rag is not getting the first interview with Superman." He bellowed in outrage and thumped his fist on the desk for emphasis.

She smiled and made up lies on the fly; lapsed reporter or not, if anyone was going to write the first story on Superman it was going to be her "It wasn't an interview we just chatted, but as a matter of interest, he came to see me last night; you know just to check up and make sure I was alright. Anyway...."

"And why should he do that?" Clark interrupted again. When Lois swung to face him, he saw the glint in her eyes flare to match the ones presently in his own, and felt his mouth water. The only time they'd talked about Superman last night, was when she told him to return all the calls he'd received. Other than that they'd been much too busy trying to devour each other to give a toss about anything else.

Lois turned, saw the gleam in Clark's eyes, allowed hers to sparkle for a moment in return then smiled demurely "Because he's thoughtful that way, I **was** the first person that he saved and I think that kinda gave him an affinity with me. Anyway, as I was saying before being so rudely interrupted..." She grinned at him, saw his lips quirk slightly and turned back to Perry "...we talked for a while, and he told me quite a bit about himself. When I asked why he didn't talk to a reporter, he said that he was worried they'd twist his words, and put their own spin on it." She paused once again, noting a number of people began to wriggle somewhat uncomfortably in their seats "So I can write you a hell of a story, giving you factual details and not a lot of made up rubbish, but as I said before you'll have to pay me for it...." Lois smiled nicely "....and I don't come cheap."

_Ain't that the truth_, Clark thought wryly.

"You know I like you Lois Lane, damned if I don't." Perry laughed cheerfully. "Let's go into my office and discuss it." He pointed towards his office but before leaving the conference room turned back to eye-ball his reporters, and yell at them one more time for good measure "This doesn't mean that any of you are off the hook. Whatever goes in tonight's edition is just going to make the public hungry for more. I expect all my reporters to be out there getting interviews, firsthand accounts, and I'll be especially pleased with anyone, who can get an exclusive interview with Superman for a follow-up article. I expect to read all about Superman in the Daily Planet; CLEAR?" They nodded obediently once again, but sighed silently in relief that for the next little while at least, they were off the hook.

***

Sitting in the conference room after it had been vacated, Chloe turned to her friend with twinkling eyes "Are you sure you wanna marry her Clark?" She chuckled under her breath "She's almost got Perry eating out of her hand; and he didn't even win an argument with her, so you don't stand a chance."

He put his head in his hands and shook it lightly "God that woman is gonna drive me bonkers; where the hell did she come up with an alien name like that?" Feeling Chloe's shoulders shaking once again, he turned his head and smiled "It serves me right for trying to bait her, but...."

"But nothing..." She chuckled lightly "You were outclassed. Didn't you see the evil little smile she gave you before coming up with that ridiculous name?"

He closed his eyes and nodded disconsolately.

Reaching over she patted his hand, and this time smiled genuinely "Well we've read her books and we know she has a way with words, so I doubt you'll have to worry about the public not accepting you. Lois will write an article that will put people very firmly on your side, and with the feats you accomplished yesterday to back it up, you'll be ok."

He bobbed his head in agreement "And at least this way the pressures off. I no longer have to worry about a less reputable paper writing complete rubbish that will ultimately discredit me."

"True." She smiled then put in "But we still have to get a story on Superman, I'm not going to be beaten by anyone else; deal."

"Damned right, but we have to play fair Chlo." She rolled her eyes and nodded "Whoever's first on scene get's the exclusive, so you'll just have to be quick of the mark."

"As quick as Lois just was?" She asked casually.

He nodded once again "Lois wasn't only quick, she also saw an opportunity that neither of us did. Believe me, last night Lo and I didn't discuss Superman at all, but that didn't stop her from coolly lying through her teeth and saying that I told her all about myself."

"But you did, so she wasn't really lying." Chloe pointed out logically.

"Oh I told her but it wasn't last night; so she didn't _technically_ lie." He stressed before going on "And since she's staying with me, we obviously saw each other, but it wasn't because I dropped in just to ensure that she was alright." Chloe's smile grew "And she didn't lie that I have an affinity with her, but it wasn't because she was my first save. However, she was still smart enough to have Perry eating out of her hand and giving her the go ahead to write the first article about Superman." He grinned and shook his head "I know myself better than anyone, you've known about me for years, but neither of us thought about spinning a bunch of bull to Perry, with just enough truth mixed in to write the first story."

Chloe nodded and grinned conspirationally "Well, I'm gonna have to start thinking like Lo, because I want the next article to have the name Chloe Sullivan under the heading."

"I'm gonna have to start thinking like her, because I want it to be Clark Kent." He grinned in return.

"You know, I like the name she came up with; Superman." She grinned wider at the flush that suffused his face "It suits you and it's much better than the 'boy-scout' title Oliver gave you years ago."

Clark rolled his eyes and heaved out a sigh "What the hell made her come up with that?"

"No idea but at least now you don't have to worry about trying to think up a name for yourself."

"I wish that I had; Superman indeed..." Clark let out a small snort "...I feel like a conceited ass."

"It's great and accurate, I just can't believe that none of us thought of it; so between the name and the article she writes, Lois will totally sell you to everyone." She tilted her head and questioned softly "Your plans for introducing yourself to the world with the JLA are shot though, and you can't blame Lois for that."

"No I can't, actually I thanked her for it several times last night instead." He wiggled his eyebrows then sobered "After exposing myself so publically by saving Lois yesterday, continuing to hide seemed pointless. It felt good Chlo, using my powers to help people openly felt good; for the first time in my life I feel absolutely free."

She nodded in understanding "How'd you know that Lois was in trouble and needed help?"

He shrugged "I don't know; I was here working and suddenly my heart just lurched. I knew Lois needed me; I didn't think about it, or waste my time second guessing how I knew, I just did." He sighed and ran a hand over his face "When I saw the truck bearing down on her my heart almost stopped. I've never been so scared Chlo; I just kept thinking that I couldn't lose her now, not when I'd only just found her again."

She placed her hand over his and squeezed it gently "You saved her Clark and that's what matters." Hoping to lighten his countenance she smiled "And as you didn't come back afterwards you missed all the excitement around here. The news-wires were going crazy, the phones began to ring of the hook, the television stations stopped their regular programming to flash pictures of you all over the world, and Perry was yelling at everyone to get off their ass and get outside hoping to see Superman and get a story."

"Well I had more than enough of my own excitement going on..." He grinned and wiggled his brows again "...and when I got home, I had even more."

"Ewww, stop telling me about your sex life with my cousin..." She broke off and sent him the same evil grin Lois had earlier "...unless you want me to start telling you about mine." When he quickly shook his head, she laughed in agreement.

When Perry's office door opened, they both quickly got up from their seats and beat a hasty retreat back to their desks, hoping to give their boss the impression they'd spent the last 15 minutes productively working, rather than chatting.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Lois shook hands with Perry and smiled "Well I'd better get started on writing the article; where should I sit?"

He pointed to the room that had recently been vacated "You can use the conference room if you like, I'll get a laptop set up for you and then you'll be all set."

"Great, where can I get some coffee?"

"Sullivan..." Perry turned and called to Chloe, she rose and joined the two "Lois here tells me that she's your cousin..." At her nod, he patted her on the shoulder "Well I know how tenacious you are Sullivan, and I can see it runs in the family. How about showing your cousin where the kitchen and facilities are, while I get a laptop organised for her."

"Yes Chief."

"Don't..."

"Sorry, I know, don't call you chief." Chloe replied with good humour and when he huffed and turned away she smiled at Lois and winked "C'mon Lo, I'll show you where you can get some coffee and since I'm guessing our lunch date is off, you can get yourself something from the vending machines to eat."

***

"Ok Lo, here's where you get the coffee and some food." Chloe pointed out amiably "The ladies toilets are down the corridor from the lifts, and there's a sign pointing the way so you should be okay."

"Thanks Chloe; I hope you're not upset that I conned my way into writing about Clark." Lois replied softly.

Chloe shook her head, determined to show her cousin that unlike years before, she honestly harboured no resentment at all "No I'm really not; I think you're the best person for the job of introducing Superman to the world, because you'll be fair but unbiased. After this, any stories about him will be about what he's doing to protect and save, which will be newsworthy in itself, but if I try to write the article giving chapter and verse on all the details about Superman, I wouldn't be able to do it without being prejudiced." Her lips crooked up in a small smile "Clark wouldn't be able to do at all because he's much too self effacing, and will leave out details that should be put in because he'll feel like he's bragging otherwise, and another reporter probably would embellish the story putting their own spin on it as you pointed out earlier. However, even though you're involved with Clark, I know you'll write a hell of an article on him without being gushy."

Lois raised and lowered her brows, and gave a small smile "Well I hope I can justify your faith in me."

"You will Lo, I've read your books remember. There's no way I could have stayed neutral like you have about some of the criminals you've written stories on, and that's why I know this article's gonna be great." She pulled her cousin into a hug and held on tight "I'm looking forward to reading it." She said quietly and pulling back smiled once again "But the next headline is gonna have the name Chloe Sullivan under the heading, just mark my words."

Grinning in relief and delight Lois nodded "I believe you."

After getting a cup of coffee and a sandwich from vending, Lois returned to the conference room and sat at down. She intended to achieve two things with this article, one to stop any speculation about Superman or his ethics dead in its tracks, and two to ensure that people understood that alien or not, they didn't need to be afraid of him.

She'd heard a newscaster on one station speculating that Clark might be the first of a soon to be invading army, who was here to lull them all into a false sense of security with good deeds, before his battalion arrived to take over the world. She'd snorted at that but had also been pissed off. That newscaster was trying to stir up trouble and make a name for himself at Clark's expense, and she intended to shut him up before he had people buying into his crap.

Placing her fingers on the keyboard, she began to type. The words flowed easily and that surprised her; writing for a newspaper was vastly different to writing a novel, but the story poured out, and her fingers flew over the keyboard.

As her mind moved faster than her fingers could type, she paused to dig a notebook and pen out of her purse, jotting down notes as ideas came to her. This allowed her to stay in the zone and focused, without losing either her momentum or any information that she felt was important to the article. Finally her fingers stopped, her mind grew quiet and sitting back with a sigh she shook her hands and flexed her fingers, before reaching around to rub the small of her back. The bulk of the work was done but it wasn't over yet. She stretched, left the room long enough to get another cup of coffee, and returned once again to the conference room.

Re-taking her seat, she read over the article time and again, tweaked a phrase here or there, moved words around, took out a couple of sentences, put them back in again, and after the fifth read through, found nothing else she wanted to change or add, and sat back satisfied.

She emailed the story to Perry, stretched and rose to her feet to visit the facilities, returned to the newsroom and glancing through the window to his office, saw Perry with head bent, and pencil in hand; concentrating on what she hoped was her story. As both Clark and Chloe seemed wholly focused on their work; she returned to the conference room, powered down the computer and sat waiting quietly.

"Lane." Perry opened his office door, and at the sound of his voice, all noise ceased.

She blew out a deep breath, rose to her feet and walked calmly out of the conference room, into the quiet of the newsroom. For a room that fairly hummed with energy, she found the stillness unnerving; even more so when all eyes turned in her direction. Knowing that everyone was listening avidly to every word, she kept her face poker straight, and focussed solely on Perry "Yes."

He smiled big and wide, and she felt the breath leave her lungs in a whoosh "You've written me a hell of an article Lois, sales for the Daily Planet are gonna skyrocket tonight." He grinned and waved the article in the air "COPY!" When the copy boy ran over, he handed him the story "Get this down there, tell 'em I'm sending the electronic copy right now." Turning around he yelled again "Wingate! Call sales! Tell 'em I want radio spots, TV spots, skywriting the lot. I want Metropolis to know that if they wanna read about the world's newest Super-hero, they can read about it in the Daily Planet."

By the time he'd finished yelling in excitement, everyone was caught up in the enthusiasm, clapping, cheering and whistling. Lois felt her face flush in pleasure, felt a slight tinge of embarrassment, but couldn't stop the smile from lighting up her face.

Clark clapped, grinned and whispered to Chloe under his breath "I'll never be able to control her now."

She looked back at him incredulous "Did you really think you ever stood a chance?"

He shook his head and chuckled "Nope and I wouldn't have it any other way."

Once the hubbub died down, Lois walked over to Chloe and Clark "Well my work is done, so I just have to wait for Perry to get my cheque from the pay office. Since we didn't have lunch together Chloe, did you wanna join us for dinner? I leave tomorrow so today's our last opportunity to get together." Before her cousin could answer, Lois heard her name and turning smiled at Jimmy, excusing herself she stepped over the aisle for a quick chat.

When Lois was out of range Chloe turned and addressed Clark "Do you mind if I join you tonight, I know you probably want Lois to yourself, but I'd like to spend some more time with her before she leaves."

"That's fine Chlo, I'm taking tomorrow morning off so I can spend it with her..." He bit his lip and paused "...actually I'd better find out if Perry will still let me take tomorrow morning off. I asked before Superman made his appearance, so he might now want all his reporters at work, but either way you're still welcome to join us."

"Thanks."

He nodded absently and with a quick step made his way to Perry's office, returning a few minutes later "Well I can still have the morning off, but he wants me here by 12 so I won't be able to take Lo to the airport." He sighed and asked "Would it be unethical of me to pretend I'm busy chasing a story, but really saying goodbye to Lois."

She looked at him with wide eyes and chuffed out a laugh "Yes."

"I thought you were going to say that but hoped otherwise." He knocked her arm with his, and tried again "Maybe you could pretend to have an accident, I'll pretend I'm taking you to the doctors and...." He stopped when her shoulders began to shake in amusement "Not gonna happen huh?"

"No, now stop it." She turned to watch her cousin having a chat with her ex-husband and smiled. She and Jimmy had been divorced for a long time, and thankfully they'd been able to become friends once again. It hadn't been easy at first, but as they hadn't parted with bitterness or acrimony, over time they'd learnt to view each other with the nice memories of nostalgia, instead of the bleakness of failure.

Turning back to Clark again she smiled "Well if we're going to dinner I'd better finish my article and send it to Perry. I'm almost done so it'll only take me half an hour at most; how about you?"

"The same." He replied simply and returning to their desks they finished their work, emailed it to Perry and powered down their computers.

***

After dinner the three stopped and bought a copy of the Daily Planet. Whether it was the headline screaming the name Superman, the photo of him underneath; which while slightly blurred wasn't too bad, Lois' article, Perry's advertising campaign or a combination of all those things, but the Daily Planet was a hard newspaper to get their hands on that night. They could have gotten a free paper from work, but as no one wanted to return to the newsroom, they had to stop at three different stands, before managing to snag the last copy in the box.

Sitting in the cab with her companions, Chloe squinted at the page but found it hard to read with the poor interior lighting, when she asked the driver if he could turn on the inner light, he initially refused, but when she told Clark and Lois that she'd read about Superman at home, the driver happily turned on the light, with the agreement that she read the story out loud. When she was finished, she looked at her cousin and grinned "That was fantastic Lo, I can see why Perry was so impressed."

Clark grabbed her hand and lifted it to his lips; Lois tugged her hand free and he smiled lopsided "Chloe's right, you made it interesting without gushing." Lois opened her mouth to reply when the cab driver decided to give his two cents worth. He started by talking about the article, then smoothly began to praise Superman; causing all three to grin. The chatter kept up for the reminder of the drive, until they reached Chloe's apartment building, after which the driver was paid, and after a last jabber about Superman, was on his way.

The two women smiled, hugged fiercely, promised to keep in contact, broke apart then came back for another long hug.

Rolling his eyes lightly, Clark tapped both their shoulders "Ladies, need I remind you both that I can easily fly either of you back and forth whenever you wish."

They grinned sheepishly, and after looking up to x-ray her apartment and the surrounding stair wells he turned to his friend "I know you can look after yourself Chloe, but I've checked anyway and its all clear." When her mouth opened he help up a hand forestalling any comments "Forget it, and we'll stay out here until you're safely inside as well."

She shook her head and smiled, hugged her cousin one last time, wished them both goodnight and retreated indoors.

***

Ushering Lois ahead of him into the apartment, Clark tugged off his tie and sighed "Well Ms Lane, I certainly liked the way you conned Perry into letting you write the first article about Superman."

She grinned unrepentant "Thank you, I was quite proud of that myself."

"Your article was good Lois, hell it was great. I couldn't have done it because I would have left out half the stuff you put in, and then the story wouldn't be half as good."

"Oh, I think you could have written a good article Clark, over the last couple of days I've read a few of your stories, so I know you have talent. You're a little green, but you have a lot of potential." She smiled in understanding and patted him on the arm "However, I know what you mean. I wouldn't like to write a story about myself if I was from another planet and had powers. It would be hard to decide what I wanted to reveal and conceal, especially when it came to extolling all the things I could do. But when you write about Superman in future, you'll be able to write about his feats as a third party, instead of making it personal."

He nodded in agreement, slipped his arms loosely around her waist and began walking her backwards to the couch "But I just have one question."

"And that is?" She asked politely, letting him tug her down onto his lap.

"How the hell did you come up with the name Superman?" He pressed his lips against the side of her mouth before looking up to catch her eyes with his again.

"Well I had to come up with something. No one in the news room had any ideas, and you'd already told me that you hadn't come up with a name yet...." She slowly unbuttoned his shirt and shrugged "...but when I glanced at you in the conference room, the name just popped into my head."

"Yeah but why Superman, do you know how conceited I feel calling myself that?" He asked in a grieved voice, tugging her blouse free of the skirt.

Her lips twitched and the smile on her face grew "I looked at you, remembered your stamina last night and thought mmm Superman." He grinned smugly, and nodding slowly in understanding she chuckled "Oh I see, you don't mind the name Superman anymore huh?"

His smile turned from smug to proud "Oh well, it's tough but I can live with it. Everyone assumes I'm called Superman because of my powers…"

"Ohhh, you are." Lois assured him silkily before licking her lips, and running a finger down his chest.

He barked out a laugh "I mean my physical powers…." When her mouth opened her again, he shook his head but grinned even wider "_**Powers**_ Lois, powers; not prowess."

"Spoilsport; anyway you no longer have to worry about coming up with a name because you now have one; and I can certainly attest that you earned it." She paused and gurgled out a laugh.

"What?" Instead of answering she continued to chuckle, waving her hand airily while his grin got bigger "What?" He urged again.

"I just wonder how many men are going to ask their other half to call them Superman in the bedroom now; can't you just hear it?" She dropped her eyes and whispered seductively "Oh yeah Superman give it to me baby, or, oh my, aren't you a Superman…" She broke off choking with laughter; he flushed, gave up the fight and joined in.

Once their laughter was under control, he grinned smugly and pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth "You can say that to me tonight."

"You wish." She snorted indelicately then screamed when he threw her over his shoulder, and carried her into the bedroom.

In the aftermath she stretched lazily, turned sideways, rubbed her foot up and down his calf, smoothed her hand over his chest, and latched gently onto his earlobe with her teeth. She blew softly, felt his small shiver, smiled and whispered "Oh yeah Superman, that was wonderful baby."

He chuffed out a laugh, hugged her hard against his chest, and rolling her under him, cupped her face in his hands "Are you ready to concede it's the best sex of your life."

She pouched out her bottom lip, and raked a hand through his hair absently "I can't tell just yet, I think we should do it a couple more times, so I can know for sure that it's not just a fluke."

"I'll give you a fluke woman." He bent down and pressed his lips firmly against hers, then lifted his head to look into her eyes "My apartments going to feel very empty without you here tomorrow night."

"I'm sure you'll survive." She returned dryly the twinkle in her eye pronounced, but instead of laughing in agreement, he shook his head instead.

"I'm gonna miss you Lois." He replied softly and without giving her time to answer, bent and took her lips with his once again. The kiss was soft and gentle, just a light peck then another and another. His hand slid to the side of her jaw, silently encouraging her mouth to open wider, and slipping his tongue inside, he stroked over the inside of her cheeks, the gums, along her teeth; exploring, tasting and claiming all the deep recesses of her mouth for himself, before returning to lazily duel with hers.

When his mouth finally lifted from hers, he opened his eyes, watched her lashes flutter up, and knew the desire in her eyes was clearly reflected in his own. His eyes traced over her face, his thumb rubbed gently along her jaw-line, as he continued to store memories of how she looked at each point in time. He wanted to capture every expression, every moment and had to silently admit, the ones when she was soft was passion were fast becoming his favourite.

Her hands smoothed over his arms "Kiss me again."

"With infinite pleasure" He replied huskily bending down to take her mouth with his. His teeth nibbled on her bottom lip, soothed the non-existent hurt with a brush of his tongue and when she moaned softly, he slipped his tongue inside once again. Their mouths stayed locked, lifted slightly, changed angles and came back together again.

His arms wrapped around her waist, he rolled onto his back and settled Lois' body on top of his, while their lips continued to cling. Her arms stretched out and slipped under his pillow, her lips lifted for a heartbeat, before descending to meet his impatient ones again.

This loving was slower, whisper caresses, fingertips gliding over hard masculine muscle, hands stroking gently along soft feminine skin. They rolled over the bed and back again while their lips continued to cling.

Their bodies moved fluidly against each others, each touch, caress and kiss building the momentum for when they'd soon be joined. He slipped his knee between her legs, moved to lie in the cradle of her thighs and lifted his head to look at the woman beneath him. Seeing the pink flush of arousal on her throat and upper neck, her face soft with desire, her eyes closed in anticipation for the moment when he slipped inside her, made the breath catch in his throat. It was him! She was feeling all of this because of him, and his heart thumped hard at the knowledge.

He pushed forward slowly, ignoring her pleas to rush, and when his penis was deep inside her channel, his hands moved down to cup her bottom. Keeping their loins pressed firmly together, he slowly began to rock; titillating her pubic bone with his. Her nails dug hard into his back, a soft moan escaped her lips "God Lois, you feel glorious." She bit softly into his shoulder, her arms clenched tighter around his neck, and withdrawing almost to the tip, he thrust forward to sink deep inside her again.

Lois decided it didn't matter what kind of sex they had, it was always the best sex of her life. Feeling the weight of his body pressing her down into the mattress, the muscles in his hard thighs and bottom, clenching and releasing against the back of her legs every time he moved, his body stroking deeply in and out of hers, all felt so decadently delicious that she almost purred, and ended by mewling softly in the back of her throat.

Clark wanted to close his eyes and just drown in sensation at the feeling of her wet warm muscles welcoming him every time he slid inside, while the soft flesh of her breasts with their stiffened nipples dragged against his chest with each movement. Her hands stroking his back, her legs wrapped around his hips were just further enticements. His eyes began to slide closed, but he forced them to stay open and on her face, stamping yet another memory of her in his mind. Feeling the gathering tension in both of them; a different kind to the rush and pounding of earlier, but no less intense for all of that, he buried his face in the side of her neck, and hummed deep in his throat while their hips met, parted and came back together again in a long languid dance as old as time.

When they'd both calmed, he pressed his lips against hers and lifted himself off to lie at her side. Scooping an arm around her waist, he cuddled her tight against his chest before tipping up her chin to look into her eyes "I'm going to miss you Lois." He repeated again softly.

She stroked her hand over his chest absently and smiled "You'll be too busy to miss me, but I do concede it's the best sex of my life."

Not wanting to push and spoil their last night together he smiled in return "Mine too."

When she drifted off to sleep, he lifted up on one elbow and gazed down at her. He'd wasted so many years, so much time, energy and emotion on the wrong woman; and as a result he'd lost years with Lois. Years and years that could never be reclaimed because they were now gone.

When he was a kid he didn't believe that anyone in the history of the world had ever loved as deeply as he did. No one had ever felt love as he and Lana did for each other, no one; not even his parents. Losing Lana had been the one thing he'd never wanted to contemplate, and yet only a few years later, he'd wanted to be divorced from her with even greater intensity than he'd ever felt in wanting to marry her.

When he was in the throes of his Lana obsession, he never would have believed that Lois could give herself so totally to anyone, never thought she would ever understand love like he did. However, it seemed that between the two of them, it was Lois who was still wounded by the scars of her failed marriage. He wasn't wary of trying again, he wasn't affected by his failed marriage; as far as he was concerned, his divorce from Lana was right up there as one of the most right and best things he'd ever done.

Lois was still very much the same in a lot of ways, but in others she'd changed a lot. She was more closed off and leery than she had been when she was 20. Then she'd been a private person, now she was open as long as he kept the conversation light hearted. Over the last few days, anytime he tried to even hint at feelings that were of a deeper nature, she withdrew a little, a guarded look would enter her eyes, and she would swiftly turn the conversation back to sex or change the subject entirely.

He was going to break down those walls, and one day she would be his completely, but until that day he was going to take whatever she gave and be thankful for it. But that wasn't going to stop him from sneakily nudging until he gained more and more ground. This morning he'd heard a newscaster speculate whether Superman would try and take over the world, he'd snorted at the idiot's words; the only thing he was interested in claiming was Lois' heart.

He cursed time for moving so rapidly that her holiday was almost over, and thought unhappily that this time tomorrow night she'd be on the opposite end of the country. Now that Superman was out of the bag so to speak, his time was no longer his own. Time again; first it was bringing her time with him to an end far too quickly, and now it was going to eat up into his personal life, thereby cutting into the time he wanted to spend with Lois.

He didn't begrudge helping people, he really did feel free and satisfied, but as Lois wasn't going to be in Metropolis, spending time with her would be harder than he'd initially thought. He'd have to find a way around it; that was all. He was fast and could fly between his home and hers within minutes. Now that he'd found her, he wasn't giving Lois up, so he'd just have to find a way to have it all, and he would.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Once the 'fasten seatbelts sign' turned off, Lois unfastened her belt, tipped her seat back, closed her eyes and smiled. The last few of days had been entertaining, definitely sexy and she'd enjoyed every bit of it. Who knew that spending time with Clark Kent could be so much fun?

When she'd left Seattle for her friend's wedding only a few days ago, she'd looked forward to having a good time with good friends, but hadn't expected her life to be changed unduly; and yet it had. First making up with a cousin who had once upon a time been much beloved, but whom she hadn't seen or spoken to in years; which in turn led to meeting up with old friends, and making new ones. But by far the biggest surprise was being swept into bed by the farm boy she'd once considered nothing more than a pest. And to top it all off, returning to her roots and writing for a newspaper again, but this time instead of writing for the Inquisitor, she'd written for the world renowned Daily Planet.

Writing her novels gave her a sense of accomplishment and she certainly loved it, but Chloe's words years before had stung. Even though she hadn't thought about them consciously, they had gotten under her skin, and she'd only discovered that when Perry had yelled in excitement over her Superman article.

It might be petty, but she was only human and seeing her name in the paper had felt like a vindication. She'd also felt a tiny bit of relish....oh hell who was she kidding; she'd all but gloated. Lois Lane had come into her own, and she'd felt a fierce rush of triumph for achieving what her cousin hadn't thought she could once upon a time.

She'd never pretended to be a choir girl, or coyly bashful so had to admit to savouring her moment in the spot-light. She'd written an article about an alien for the greatest newspaper in the world, and the reception she'd received this time, was far different to one she'd received when she'd written about an alien for the Inquisitor years before. Then Chloe and Clark had all but laughed at her, this time they and everyone else had cheered. Had she turned fast enough, she wouldn't have been surprised to see a vision of her younger-self standing at her side, and sticking her fingers in an 'up yours' gesture at both of them.

She'd never felt like doing that with her novels, she was proud of her work but had never felt the need to prove herself because her friends had all believed in her from the beginning; in a way that's what made this was all the sweeter. Clark's opinion had been a non-issue; considering his full time occupation had been to sit on his ass, bemoaning the state of his love life to anyone who couldn't run away fast enough, what he'd thought of her job at the Inquisitor hadn't bothered her one whit; her cousin had been different. With Clark she'd felt vindicated, with her cousin gratified. Making up with Chloe had been wonderful and she'd been glad to do so, but gaining her cousins respect for her writing as a Journalist, had healed the hurt she'd unknowingly been harbouring for years.

What was just as sweet was the very nice check she'd received in recompense. Satisfaction was one thing, but she wasn't about to sell her talent short either. She'd made the Planet pay very handsomely for the privilege of getting her work; and that had been the cherry on top of a very nice sundae.

Or maybe the cherry had been the great sex and companionship she'd had with Clark; nah the cherry was the money, Clark had been the icing. It was a pity they hadn't gotten to spend the morning together, but she understood that when duty called he had to obey. However, it would have been nice if they'd had the time to get a quickie in before she left.

Yawning hugely, she stretched, grabbed her mp3 player, and slipped into a light doze while listening to Lionel Ritchie as the plane carried her homewards.

***

Chloe saw Clark stride toward his desk, grabbed his arm and towed him to the stationery supply room, shutting the door behind them.

After a quick look to ensure they were alone, she turned back and smiled at the curious expression on his face "I'm guessing by all the Superman news that I've seen on the TV this morning, you didn't get to spend much time with Lois before she left."

"I didn't get to spend any of it with her; we'd barely woken up when I heard a news report on the fire downtown and went; from there it was one thing after another. By the time I was free it was just on 12, and I had to come in to work." He raked a hand through his hair and sighed "Some great morning this turned out to be."

"Well it was great for all the people you helped." Chloe replied consolingly.

He nodded and gave a lopsided smile in return "True, I just wanted to spend the last few hours Lois had in Metropolis with her, not flying around all over the globe."

"Yeah but as you reminded us only last night, you can fly to Seattle anytime so it's not a big deal, and I'm sure Lois understood."

He nodded and when he heard Perry yelling, rolled his eyes in response "Well I'd better get to work or I'll be unemployed, and then I'll really have something to complain about."

She grinned in reply "Let's have lunch, Lois called me earlier and gave me an idea that I wanna bounce of you." He nodded, pulled the door open, and both retreated back to their desks.

***

At lunch time they stopped at the corner deli, bought sandwiches and coffee, then retreated to the park and snagged the last free bench. After ascertaining that no ears could hear their discussion, Clark turned to Chloe in curiosity.

"So what'd Lo call you about?"

"Nothing much, she just called to say bye, reminded me to come visit her in Seattle with your mom next month, that kind of thing." She took a sip of her coffee and grinned "Anyway I mentioned that her article was re-printed twice last night since the Planet sold out so quickly, and that it had been run again in this morning's edition."

He nodded and took a bite of his sandwich, wondering what Chloe was up to since the twinkle in her eye had become even more pronounced. "Uh huh, so what'd Lo say that's got you almost bouncing with excitement?"

Her smile grew wider and after a sip of coffee she began "Ok, so we both want the next Superman story to have our name under the headline right?" He nodded "Well as you were out and about but not in Metropolis when I was talking to Lo, I was tossing around ideas with her for how I could know where you were at any given time so that I could be the first reporter on scene and get the story. I was thinking of putting a tracking device on you...." She broke off and giggled at the incredulous look on his face "I'm teasing...kind off. Anyway, that's when Lois reminded me that Perry will be especially pleased with the person who can get an exclusive interview with Superman, as a follow-up to her article." She paused and beamed out a mega watt smile "I've decided that you and I are going to be the two reporters he's pleased with."

Clark shook his head "Chloe that's not fair, whoever's first on scene get's the story; that's the rule."

She rolled her eyes "Exactly and as Lois reminded me, you are the story." When his mouth opened, she held up a hand to forestall him "I'm not talking about scooping someone else in a dirty dealing kind of way, because this article won't be about who you're saving or what you're doing; this one is about Superman himself. No one knows him better than you do; but because you do things so naturally, you don't even think about it, right?" He bobbed his head in agreement "So I'll interview you, drawing out details about things that you take for granted, you'll answer, and it'll be an exclusive by both of us."

He titled his head in consideration, and his lips began to spread "We're not taking anything from anyone because it's not a story about what Superman's doing, it's just a follow-up article to the one Lois has already written."

"Exactly; see Lois's article gave Superman a voice, a heart; and with his actions to back it up, he appears less of a god and more approachable. Her article has reached out and touched the common man. Take that newscaster who was talking a lot of rubbish yesterday, about Superman's army coming over to take over the world, well today he's been put in his place. Have you checked out the internet or heard the news?" At his head shake, Chloe smiled in satisfaction "You should, he's copped an ear full from people who read Lois' story, and they all pretty much told him to shut up."

His grin widened at the delight in her voice. However, feeling the need to be fair, he started to defend the man, but Chloe was having none of it "He was just trying to stay impartial Chlo, he didn't know anything about Superman...."

"That's right he didn't, so he shouldn't have said anything, instead of trying to cause trouble." She cut in bluntly "He wasn't being impartial, he was being a twerp and he's been told to stuff it." She smiled and patted his hand "Anyway, getting back on track, our article will flesh out Superman just that little bit more, and it'll make Perry almost weep with happiness, thereby making us his favourites for a few days." She beamed, and tapped her plastic cup against his.

He shook his head in amazement "I don't know who's more frightening; Lois for putting this idea into your head in the first place or you for running with it."

"Lois; but I'm catching up." She knocked his arm with hers, and giggled when he nodded heartily in agreement.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Stepping inside his apartment on Friday evening, Clark looked around and grimaced. Lois had only stayed with him for three nights, but when he'd told her that his apartment was going to feel empty once she was gone, he'd spoken the truth. He missed not seeing her when he came home from work, he missed holding her at night; he just missed her.

He hadn't seen her for 15 years, couldn't say that he'd missed her in that time; but now that he'd found her again, everything seemed coloured in grey without her presence. She'd only stayed with him for three days, and he missed her like hell.

For the past two nights, he'd lain in bed, remembering how it felt to have her near, and hated that he was once again reduced to sleeping alone. He'd been too damn busy with both his jobs to even give her a call since she'd left, and unless he could find a solution fast, she was more than likely going to believe that both his speeches about wanting to see her once she left Metropolis had been a lot of rubbish.

He strode through the apartment, dumped his laptop on the kitchen table, walked into his bedroom straight to the bathroom, stripped, had a quick shower, shaved, dressed and was out a few minutes later. He stepped into the kitchen, opened the fridge hoping to find something to eat, and closed it just as quickly.

This was the first time since Wednesday morning that all was quiet. He couldn't hear any sirens, no calls for help; nor did he have any stories that had to be worked on. He was free and he wasn't going to spend it alone. Grinning, he spun into his suit, flew out the window and took to the skies. He only had one destination in mind, Seattle; specifically Lois.

Within minutes he came to a stop above her house, took a quick look around the neighbourhood, and after ensuring the coast was clear, flew down, landed in her backyard and swiftly spun out of the suit into his jeans and t-shirt.

As it was the middle of summer and darkness had yet to fall in Seattle, he could see the house and garden easily. Everywhere he looked, the profusion of colours in the different flowers showed a clear testament to Lois' profess of gardening. Upon hearing the soft dreamy music wafting through the air, he lifted his eyes from the garden to the gazebo and grinned. Lois was right, it was a little fancy but it fit right into the setting. It was partially enclosed, with a wooden roof and half shades, while the white latticework around the base and upper trim gave it a romantic touch. The abundance of flowers and fairy-lights scattered here and there, played a perfect backdrop, altogether making her backyard inviting and somewhat magical.

He walked towards the gazebo, his shoes silent on the grass and came to a stop at the opening to take in the view. It wasn't the outdoor setting that captured his attention, but his love, asleep on a chaise lounge with a huge mountain of a dog snuffling quietly on the ground beside her. If he wasn't invulnerable he'd turn tail and run, but instead he squared his shoulders, took a step forward and promptly stopped when the dog awoke, sat up and growled low in his throat.

Lois put out a hand absently, patted the animal to calm him, and kept dozing; but instead of relaxing the dog continued to watch him carefully. He trod forward confidently, crouched down on his haunches, let the dog have a good sniff of him, and when it calmed, scratched him under the chin, before leaning up to press his lips lightly against Lois'.

She stirred, lashes fluttered up, and her eyes fastened onto his face "Hi."

"Hi yourself."

"What are you doing here?"

"I told you that I'd come to see you." He replied brushing the hair from her cheek.

"Yeah, but I didn't think you meant so soon."

"I would have been here sooner if I hadn't been so damned busy." He leant forward and pressed his lips against hers gently once again, before lifting his head to smile. She swung her legs off the chaise, he sat down beside her and reaching down, picked up her legs and placed them in his lap "Don't you know it's dangerous to be outside at night fast asleep; anyone could have found you."

"Anyone did." She grinned back "Besides it's not even dark yet, and Fred was on guard."

He looked at the dog, saw the mutt was once again lying down, and turned back to Lois with lifted brow.

She gurgled out a laugh and shook her head "He really is a good watch dog. If he'd thought you were up to no good, you'd have a nice set of teeth prints in your arm, with a nice big dog attached to it as well."

He tilted his head to the side "How'd he know I wasn't up to anything?"

She shrugged "Animals tend to have a sixth sense about people, and Fred's better than most; also his size is usually enough to intimidate anyone who doesn't know him."

Clark titled his head to look down at the animal "I can understand why; so is he a dog or a small horse?"

Lois leant down, scratched Fred's head, and looked over her shoulder to smile at him "He's a beauty isn't he. I was going to the market one day and saw a woman trying to sell her puppies. Fred was the aberration of the litter as he was about 3 times the size of the others. No one was paying any attention to him because they were too busy oohing and ahhing over the cute, small puppies, but I thought he was just adorable; so I took him."

"Why did you call him Fred?"

"Because he was so big and clumsy when he was a puppy, that he reminded me of Fred Flintstone." She replied promptly.

He grinned in understanding "Don't your allergies bother you anymore?"

"No, his hairs short so that helps, and as long as I take my tablets, I'm ok." She paused and grinned at her dog "And with this mountain of fur as a constant reminder, I never forget."

He nodded in agreement and asked curiously "What'd you do with him when you were in Metropolis?"

She smiled and after a last scratch of Fred's head, sat back up "He was in one of those fancy dog kennels, and although he's been there before and the staff love him, and I knew that'd he be ok; he still showed me the sulks when I picked him up yesterday morning." When Clark grinned, she nodded "Seriously, last night I was practically on my hands and knees begging forgiveness, after he'd spent all day ignoring me."

Chuckling lightly at the mental picture her words had conjured, he looked at Fred and noted the animal was looking at Lois with sheer devotion "He's not sulking anymore."

"That's because I bribed him." Lois replied shamefaced, and at his quirked brow she shrugged half-heartedly "Yes I know that I'm not supposed to, and I don't make it a habit, but I think those trainers are sometimes just full of crap. They don't have to live with a big baby who sighs woefully, mopes and only comes reluctantly with a pathetic 'are you sure you really want me back' look on his face, when I pick him up from the kennel after I've been away for a few days."

Clark let out a burst of laughter and shook his head "I can't believe you let your dog guilt you into sucking up."

"Yeah well you should have seen me last night; I swear the kennel he was in, is like the Buckingham Palace for pets, but he still managed to make me feel like the lowest scum on earth for leaving him there." She looked at Fred and smiled when she saw that he was pointedly looking down at the ground "But it's all good now because he loves me again."

He smiled back, and lifted his hand to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear "You didn't tell me you had a dog."

"I think we were too busy with other things to exchange information." She teased, and swinging her legs off his lap, stood and stretched "What's the time?"

He looked at his watch "Almost 9.30 but that's in Metropolis, so here it's almost 6.30."

"Well then did you wanna stay and have some dinner?"

"Please, besides I think it's only fair that you feed me, since I took the time to be in your neighbourhood and all."

"It only takes you a minute to be in the neighbourhood." She chuckled lightly, and turned to enter the house.

"It's the thought that counts Lo." Clark replied wounded and likewise standing began to follow her into the house but was bumped out of the way by Fred, who pushed in front to follow his mistress. The dog trod inside, then turned, sat down on his haunches to block the doorway and looked up at him. Stopping short, Clark looked at the dog, the dog stared back. The two males shared a long considering look and sized each other up, until finally Fred let out a small huff and moved aside allowing him entrance. He smiled, stepped forward, and bent down to give the mutt another scratch, understanding that he'd been given the seal of approval.

Rising to his feet, he stepped inside the house and into the kitchen, slid the screen door closed and looked up to find Lois stepping back into the kitchen and heading towards the stove.

"Um Lo...." She looked up curious "Where can I wash my hands?"

She pointed to the direction she'd just come from "Just down the hall, the second door on the right." Opening the oven she pulled out a large dish and placed it on the island.

"Do you mind if I look around?' She shook her head; he smiled in thanks and after washing his hands, proceeded to step from one room to the next taking in the surroundings.

She had a lovely house, the rooms were spacious, without feeling overlarge or uncomfortably showy, and he was grateful. Nothing could put a person more ill at ease than a house that had a designer, never been touched, sit up straight and don't drop feeling to it. Lois' house didn't have that feeling. There was a nice hodgepodge of classic and vintage furniture, with just a touch of the bohemian. A decorator wouldn't have used the combination, which meant that Lois had done it herself. He'd never thought about it before, but when Lois had lived above the Talon, she'd just moved her stuff in after Lana vacated it, but hadn't bothered changing the colour scheme or much of anything to suit herself. However, as her home was a direct contrast to her old apartment, it was clear that Lana's taste was vastly different to Lois'. Here she'd taken the time and care to stamp her style throughout, and he understood that _here_ she lived; at the Talon she'd only existed.

He was hoping to coax her into allowing him to spend a lot of time with her here, at least until he could nudge her into moving to Metropolis. He stopped on the threshold to her bedroom and his lips lifted slightly. Her bedroom didn't have a girly edge to it thank goodness. It was feminine which was to be expected, but as Lois had never been over girly, her room wasn't covered in an excess of lace and trimmings. He wouldn't feel awkward sharing it with her for the interim, and that was something he was hoping to get her agreement on this evening. His eyes took in the queen sized bed, the simple furnishings and with a last pleased smile he returned to the kitchen to find her setting the table "You have a beautiful house Lo."

She looked up and smiled "Thanks, I knew that I'd be here forever, so decorated it exactly the way I like it."

"You don't think you'll ever move?" He asked quietly and felt his stomach drop. Pushing aside his disappointment, he strode forward to carry the dishes from the counter to the table.

"Nope, I've had enough of that. I moved around a lot before I found this place and now that I have, this is it." She placed the cutlery on the table, turned and grabbed the napkins.

"Do you want me to cut some bread?"

"Please." After slicing several pieces, he picked up the butter from the counter and placed both on the table, before turning to watch quietly as she fed the dog.

Looking at the amount of food, he hoped that Lois hadn't intended to share it with anyone else, but had to know so asked "Ok, so I have just one question; how come you have enough food for at least three people?"

She straightened up and grinned in reply "Because I have a housekeeper who insists on making extra. I sometimes forget to eat when I'm working, and as she's part Greek, forgetting to eat is almost a mortal sin. So she makes enough to ensure that I'm never in danger of going hungry, and always have leftovers."

"You have a house keeper?" Clark asked surprised.

"Uh huh; there should be a bottle of red wine chilling in the fridge; can you open it, while I grab the salad?" He nodded, retrieved the wine, poured it, and carrying the salad to the table, she gestured for him to take a seat.

After his third helping, Clark sat back replete "Well whatever you pay her is worth it; those were the best lamb chops I've ever had."

Lois smiled in agreement "Yeah she's great. When she applied for the job, I wasn't sure if I'd feel like eating rich Greek food every night, but she said that she can cook anything from American pot roast to meatloaf, and she wasn't kidding."

He picked up his wine and sipped before placing the glass back down and confessing "I actually thought you might have had a date that was cancelled, and that's why you had the extra food."

She shook her head and slightly rolled her eyes "Why didn't you just ask me?"

He shrugged and sipped his wine "I came here not only to see you tonight, but also because I have a proposition for you."

"Uh huh."

"I was thinking..."

"About....?" Lois encouraged when he stopped.

"Well I know that we agreed to take our time."

"Yeah."

"But I was thinking about some stuff, and thought it was best if I talk to you in person."

Lois smiled at the uneasiness in his voice "This sounds serious, so how about we put the leftovers in the fridge, the dirty dishes in the dishwasher and sit in the lounge room. We can have dessert afterwards?"

He nodded and rising the two of them worked in tandem until the kitchen was once again spotless. "Do you want some more wine?" At her nod, he refilled their glasses, and glanced over to see that Fred was curled up beside the back door snoozing.

Well he'd better start looking at houses in Metropolis; since Fred came as part of a package deal with Lois, and no building owner would allow a pet of his size in an apartment, they were going to need a house. They'd have to rent until they could afford to buy, but he could start scouting around and find out what was available, then after he convinced Lois to move back to Metropolis, he could take her round and show her all the places he'd found. His lips lifted in a half smile; correction, he'd fly her and Fred there, then all of them could look around until they all found something that suited.

With a last smile at the behemoth, he followed Lois into the lounge room and took a seat beside her on the couch.

Rather than rushing him into speech, Lois sat quietly waiting for Clark to begin. Turning to face her, he put his glass on the coffee table and picked up her hand "You agreed that we could take our time, but also said that our relationship would be casual, right?" She nodded and gestured with her glass for him to continue "Ok, well as you know Superman's going to be keeping me pretty busy, which is going to cut into my personal life." She nodded and lifted one shoulder in agreement "So I was thinking that on the weekends I could come here and stay with you."

"That's not exactly taking our time." She reminded him gently.

"Yes it is, but taking our time doesn't mean we have to take it in separate cities 7 days a week." He corrected without shifting his eyes from hers. "I'll come here after work on Friday night and stay until the Monday morning, and this way we have a firm date every weekend."

She chewed it over for a moment "I know you can fly here easily enough, but weekends are date nights. Don't you wanna spend what free time you have with women who live a little closer to you, women that you can see during the week as well?"

He planned on spending time with her during the week; and coaxing her into letting him stay each weekend was just the beginning he needed. As she'd pointed out, the weekends were date nights, and he'd intended to ensure that hers were fully booked with no one but himself. However, as he couldn't very well tell her that, he decided to deflect whatever arguments she came up with, from any angle that he could find. He was going to win this; win her and if that meant telling her a load of crap, just to get her agreement into letting him stay on the weekends, then he considered it fair play. All he needed was to get his foot in the door, and a permanent invite to spend the weekends would accomplish that. His next campaign of action would be to claim more and more, until she was his once and for all.

He shook his head in answer to her question "I've only been working at the Planet for a month, and I'm sure you remember what it's like being a reporter?" She lifted her brows in query; so he explained further "You never know when a story's gonna break, so I have to make sure that I'm available. I really wanna concentrate on my career right now, building a reputation as a journalist; not worrying about looking for dates during the week."

Although she nodded in understanding, her brow wrinkled in confusion "But won't that also apply during the weekend?"

"Nope, as Clark Kent I've gotta have some down time, because as Superman I'm not always going to always have that luxury; and as I'll only be working at the Planet on the weekend if a story's hot, it all works out."

She pursed her lips and nodded slowly once again.

Seeing that she needed a little more convincing, he decided to up the ante and hoped it would be enough "You have to admit we had fun together Lo; not just in bed but out of it too." When she smiled he knocked her arm lightly with his "Besides I told you that I'd miss you and I have."

"I've only been gone two days." She replied dryly.

"And two nights." He countered in the same vein.

"Missed the sex huh?"

He rocked his head lightly in pretend agreement "I've missed you and the sex."

She grinned in return "Well, truth be told, so have I; although we only spent a few days together I enjoyed myself."

"You don't have to sound so surprised." He replied reproachfully, but felt heartened at her words nonetheless.

She sipped her wine and smiled impishly "I can't help it. I never would have believed that I could enjoy your company so much; but now that you're no longer playing the role of Lana's bitch in some kind of Smallville prison movie, you're a fun guy."

Clark groaned "I wasn't that bad...." At her lifted brows, he groaned louder "Oh god, I was that bad; I was Lana's bitch, wasn't I?

"Mmm hmm" She replied, lifting her glass to sip, but couldn't suppress the smile that touched her lips.

"No one else has ever said that to me, thank goodness." He let go of her hand, reached for his wine and took a big gulp, almost spitting it out at her next words.

"They never said it, but I bet they thought it." Lois replied promptly. He looked up, saw her face was dead straight, but her eyes were filled with mirth and her lips quivered in betrayal.

He drained his glass, took hers and drained it as well. "I'm not going to ask anyone, I have a feeling ignorance is bliss in this situation."

"Very wise; and now that you've drunk my wine, how about getting me another glass?" He zipped to the kitchen, grabbed the bottle and returned to the living room, to refill both their glasses.

"Anyway, getting this conversation back to the point, what'd you think?" Clark asked calmly.

"About you staying here on the weekends?" Lois asked not bothering to pretend she didn't know what he was talking about.

"Yeah."

"What happened to casual?"

"It's only on the weekends Lo."

"Well I do have a spare room that you can sleep in." She replied seriously.

He chuffed out a laugh "I was hoping to sleep with you."

Lois shook her head sadly "I don't know Clark, I met a girl today who warned me that if I let a boy get too close, I'm liable to catch boy germs."

"How old was this girl?" He asked amused.

"About 8, but she seemed very wise for her years." Lois replied straight-faced.

"Well I can catch girl germs too."

"Don't you know anything; girl germs are pretty." She replied patiently with a light roll of her eyes.

He grinned and crossed his heart "If I promise not to give you boy germs, can I stay?"

She thought about it for a moment, sipped her wine and finally nodded slowly.

"Is that a yes?" He asked cautiously.

"Yes." She confirmed with a lopsided smile.

"Good." He grinned in return.

Lois looked him dead in the eye and added the cautionary warning "But Clark, if you get sick of the back and forth, I won't be offended if you change your mind. Or if there's a weekend where you just don't feel like coming over that's fine, but let me know so that I don't waste my time expecting you, ok?"

"I will but I don't see that being a problem. There might be occasions when I won't be here straight after work on Friday because of Superman duties, but otherwise I'll be here or I'll let you know." He replied; feeling pleased when she relaxed and nodded in agreement.

He placed his glass on the coffee table, took hers, placed it beside his and gathered her in his arms "I think we should seal the deal." Without giving her time to respond, he captured her mouth with his, and softly urged her mouth to open by running his tongue along the seam. As soon as her lips parted, he slipped his tongue inside, caressing and enticing hers into the dance. Their lips stayed locked as their tongues twisted and twined, rolled and played with each others. When their mouths broke apart; his eyes opened to gaze at the woman in his arms.

Her lashes fluttered open, and her eyes smiled into his "Did you want dessert?"

He smiled devilishly "We're having it." Her rose, gathered her up and carried her into the bedroom.

"Mmmm...Clark...othe..." Her voice was drowned under his lips once again.

It was several minutes before he released her lips, but leant forward to capture her mouth softly with his once then again, before letting her up for air.

"Were you trying to say something Lo?" He nuzzled against her throat, while his hands got busy tugging her t-shirt up and off.

She sat up, straddled his lap, tugged him up to sitting position and dragged his t-shirt off "If you're staying for the weekend, don't you think you'd better go home and get some clothes, or you'll be wearing the same outfit for the next two days."

"Two and a half." He corrected, then made her scream when he grabbed her around the waist and rolled her under him again "I'll go later; right now I have more important things to do."

She laughed throatily in reply, tugged down his zipper and wiggled her eye brows before slipping her hand inside to cup him through his briefs "Such as?"

"Such as getting you to call me Superman; right here, right now." He grinned; slipping her bra off and palming one rich globe, while his thumb lazily stroked back and forth over the tip.

She laughed again, pressed her mouth to his ear and whispered "You'll have to earn it."

"I'm going to." He promised and took her lips with his once again.

***

Sighing deeply in satisfaction, Clark rolled off Lois and lay with his face almost buried in the pillow, while he panted harshly and enjoyed the languorous feeling settling through every muscle and tendon in his body. He could hear Lois' heart thundering, her lungs working overtime to drag in deeps gulps of air, and felt even more satisfied that he'd just given her every reason to be happy that she'd said yes.

"You know, I think I like the idea of you staying over every weekend." Lois confessed and stretched lazy as a cat.

He rolled over, turned his head to the side and almost laughed at the goofy smile on her face. He shook his head sadly, but didn't bother trying to suppress the twinkle he knew was shining bright in his eyes "You just wanna use me as some kind of sex toy." Leaning over, he kissed her quickly and gave into the laughter "And I accept."

Lois giggled "I have my own personal sex toy, woo hoo."

Laughing he picked her up, settled her on top of him and crushed her close, while they both continued to chuckle. When the room was silent, the lay quietly; just enjoying the feeling of closeness being together brought.

"Do you want some dessert now?" She asked softly.

"Yeah I do." He replied, rubbing one hand up and down her back.

She nodded, pecked his chin and went to shift off him, but instead of letting her go, he rolled them over and cupped her face in his hands "Do you mind if I bring some stuff that I can leave here. Y'know work clothes for Monday's and other stuff, to save me having to pack every weekend."

She smiled and shook her head "That's fine, then at least if you get called away on Monday morning's, you don't have to go home and change before going to work."

He nodded as if agreeing with her reasoning, and pressed a kiss to her cheek "Thanks."

"Just one thing..." He began to rise but stopped at her voice "You do realise that flying here every weekend, doesn't give you intergalactic frequent flier miles, right?"

His eyes narrowed at the smirk on her face "You think that's really funny, don't you?"

She nodded and smothered the laughter with the back of her hand "Yep."

"What is wrong with calling myself an Intergalactic Traveller, might I ask?" Clark asked politely.

"Nothing; except you haven't travelled anywhere." Lois squeaked out, before giving in and screaming with laughter.

"I travelled here." He replied indignantly.

"You were put in a space ship and sent here; you didn't plot a course and explore the galaxy in your travels." She replied between giggles.

He huffed, grumbled and rising stood and began to dress "I'm going home, having a shower, changing and will be back with some stuff." Once dressed he bent down and pressed a kiss against her smiling lips. "No one's ever laughed at that before...." then quickly held up a hand when her mouth opened "I know they probably wanted to."

***

He zipped home, packed and was about to return when a Superman emergency detained him but was back in Seattle within 45 minutes. When he returned it was to find that Lois had made room for him in her closet and had given him two drawers. Seeing his clothes hanging beside hers, appreciating that she was making room for him, he smiled.

He'd won the first round, and felt pleased with himself; not that he'd intended to lose. If he'd had to seduce Lois just to remind her of the great sex they could have every weekend, then he'd been ready to do so. Chuckling lightly he shook his head; he had done that, but at least he'd been a gentleman about it. He'd only done it after Lois had agreed.

After putting the remainder of his clothes away, he stepped into the bathroom, placed his toothbrush next to hers, put his aftershave and various other items into the cabinet, and felt another burst at satisfaction at seeing his toiletries beside hers. Returning to the lounge room, he took a seat beside her once again, and began to dig into the dessert Lois had set aside for him.

Right now he felt more than a little content with his lot in life. Stage one was complete; her weekends were now going to be spent with him. Whatever outings, gatherings or parties she was invited to, if it was on a weekend, he'd be right there beside her. Stage two was next; getting her agreement to dating him exclusively, and that was another battle he had no intention of losing. She was already his and just didn't know it yet; but he did. For now he'd let her think it was just sex; and by the time she realised it never had been, her heart would belong to him, as surely as his already belonged to her, and by then it would be far too late to run.


	13. Chapter 13

Just a quick Q: I spent hours yesterday just trying to load this file, it wouldn't take the document in either word or open office format, and after many, many tries I converted to htm and then had to edit it all over again. Can anyone tell me if they've likewise had problems, or was I the lucky one? And if so is there a way to solve; I tried to load as word again today but it still won't won't accept so am using the htm version. I have my stories saved as word and never had a problem before, and really can't be bothered putting myself through this from now on; so any is help appreciated. Thank you. Linda.

**Chapter 13**

_6 weeks later_

Clark sipped his beer, and along with all the other men standing around, gave his two cents worth on how best to barbeque steak to Dwayne Peterson, in between chatting casually about this and that.

Looking up, he found Lois sitting at a table with the women, sipping mimosas and chatting. Whatever they were talking about had to be funny, as peal after peal of feminine laughter was heard echoing around the back yard.

The last 7 weeks had been the best of his life, starting from the night he'd found Lois once again. As promised, his mom and Chloe had come to spend the weekend in Seattle and all three women had enjoyed their time together enormously; so much so that he was given the honour of being designated their official taxi. They now had a standing date to spend one weekend a month together; either in Seattle, Metropolis or at the farm.

Both his mom and Chloe had fallen in love with Fred at first sight, and he'd certainly revelled in their doting. The mutt not only liked the limelight, he was complete a ham to boot; ducking his head beseechingly while begging for scraps like he'd never seen food before, whining and pushing his nose into people's laps to get their attention, and if that didn't work, putting his big paw on their knee and panting until he was noticed, then rolling over to have his tummy scratched. He could be wrong, but was pretty sure that Fred had laughed at him a number of times when the mutt managed to snag the women's; especially Lois' attention away from him.

Of course when the women went shopping, that didn't stop Fred from deciding that even a human male was better than nothing. The animal had followed the women to the door, wagged his tail hopefully and barked, but after Lois gave him a pat and left, Clark noticed that he was now Fred's number one person; not very flattering since he was the only person left.

Fred's tail had drooped; he'd looked over his shoulder, trotted over to the couch, jumped up and tried to sit his big doggy butt in his lap. Thank god he was Superman, or his and Lois' sex life would have come to a screeching halt. He'd felt sorry for the mutt and had given him a good scratch, before they'd settled down to watch TV together, but when the women returned, Fred promptly abandoned him once again; fickle beast.

He wouldn't have minded his mom and Chloe cutting into his time with Lois, he wouldn't have minded their decision to spend one weekend a month together, if it wasn't for the fact that Lois had made a 'no sex' rule while his mom was around.

Ok he could understand that, Lois and he were like teenagers who had just discovered sex, had no self control and god it was fabulous. They couldn't get enough of each other and when the mood struck, they never bothered holding back. They tumbled each other down onto any flat surface that was available, at any given time of the day or night. So if she hadn't put the kibosh on fooling around, more than likely at some point his mom and Chloe would have caught them _In flagrante delicto. _

Given that neither he nor Lois was shy when it came to amorous suggestions, they'd also been quite loud on occasion, laughed and cavorted like children who'd been given a rare treat, or with just a look the fire between them would blaze, and the sex was so intense, he was surprised that he hadn't set her house on fire. He shuddered at the thought of not only his mom and Chloe catching them, but the fire department as well, and gulping down a huge swig of beer, decided he was glad that not only had the 'no sex rule' had been put in place, but that he'd learnt to control his heat vision, and Lois didn't have it.

Shaking his head to banish images of Lois' house blazing in the background, while the two of them hid behind Fred in their birthday suits; he smiled internally. Stage two was over; he'd prevailed, and now wanted to just bask in the feeling of smugness that was spreading through his heart at the knowledge.

Last weekend he'd finally managed to secure Lois' agreement to dating him exclusively. He'd spent the previous month trying to ease her into it, without doing anything that would send the red flags waving or giving her a hint that he was very nicely moving her in the direction that he wanted. However, when he'd seen her on a date last Wednesday night, he frankly hadn't given a damn about strategy, planning or subtlety; all he'd cared about was putting his stamp on her. Subtle could go to hell; Lois was his and it was past time that she became aware of that fact. He'd been shilly-shallying long enough, it was time for the big guns; letting Lois know that he was the **only** man that she'd be seeing in future.

He joined in the conversation with the men absently, while his mind continued to recall the previous weekend's debacle and his eventual victory. Poor Lois didn't even realise there had been a showdown, nor that he'd won, but he did and felt even more satisfied at the end result.

The previous Monday he'd looked forward to spending the coming weekend alone with Lois; his mom and Chloe had hogged her when they stayed over, and although he was glad they'd had a good time, he was even more pleased they were weren't going to cut in on his time for at least another month.

What made it even better was when Perry told him on Wednesday afternoon, that he could have both the Friday and Monday off work due to the extra hours he'd been putting in. He'd intended to race home after work, call Lois and ask her if she'd mind a houseguest for the full four days he had off. However, he was sidetracked by a couple of Superman emergencies and didn't get home until well after 11pm. Figuring that it was far too late to call, and deciding to do it on the morrow, he'd had a shower, and had just slipped into bed, when he remembered that it was just after 8pm in Seattle. Snatching up the phone, he hit automatic dial and waited for the line to be picked up, but when the phone clicked over to the answering machine, he sighed. He heard Lois' voice, opened his mouth to leave a message, changed his mind and hung up. Dropping back down onto the bed, he stared out the window and debated.

Ok, so she wasn't home now, but if she was out shopping, or having dinner with her friends then she might be home soon. He jumped out of bed, spun into his suit and decided to tell her in person. He still had to work the next day, but it was almost the weekend, and if Lois missed him as much as he missed her during the week, maybe she'd be amenable to his staying the night as well.

He stopped above her house, grinning at the thought of surprising her, x-rayed down to ensure that she was home, and the smile instantly fell off his face. She was home alright, but she wasn't alone. His teeth bared at the sight of the feminine sexy dress she was wearing for what was obviously her date; a snarl escaped his lips when he wrenched his eyes of her long enough to focus on the man and noticed that not only was the guy interested in her, but had definite ideas in mind. As they'd made themselves comfortable drinking wine and chatting in the gazebo, it was even more obvious the date was far from over. Tuning in, he heard the music, her soft laughter and clenched his jaw hard.

Turning around he flew back to Metropolis and was in bed staring up at the ceiling minutes later, but his mind refused to shut down.

Ok, so she was on a date, but they hadn't been doing anything more interesting than talking and drinking wine. Lois had told him their relationship was only casual, she'd also warned him that she didn't want anything serious. He'd hoped their spending so much time together would change her mind somewhat, and felt the heaviness in his heart that it hadn't happened.

Well maybe it was time to push a little harder, and tie her down a little more. Dating was one thing but he hoped to god that she hadn't been sleeping with anyone else, hoped that she didn't with the man that was at her place right now, and felt his stomach clench hard at the possibility.

Pushing back the bedcovers, he threw on his suit and flew back to her house. If the guy tried anything, made any sudden moves he was going down there and putting a stop to it; even if that meant just turning up, and hanging around until the bastard left.

He waited in a fever of impatience, clenching his hands and jaw as the time ticked away, flew away to answer a couple of calls, came back, but didn't relax until he saw Lois usher her guest towards the front door. When the man drew her close and kissed her, he growled low in his throat and had been on the point of flying down, when he heard Fred barking, and watched as the mutt pushed his bulk between them. He whispered encouragement at Fred to bite the guy on the ass and push him out the door with his body, but was content when Lois finally pulled away, looked down and shook her head at the dog exasperated, then smiled in apology before ushering the guy out.

Closing his eyes in relief, he allowed his shoulders to relax, his hands to unclench, felt the knot in his gut loosen and sighed deeply. When he opened his eyes, it was to find that Lois was telling Fred off; she was standing with hands on her hips, foot tapping, and tuning in he heard the end of her lecture "That was really rude Fred, you've never done that before, so what on earth brought it on?" He smiled for the first time when the dog just sniffed, and went back to lie down beside the back door.

He loved Fred; the mutt had given him the once over, but he'd never snarled at him for kissing Lois. He was clearly making sure that no one, other his new best friend Clark Kent was allowed to make time with his owner. He'd have to remember to take him a big meaty bone in appreciation.

With a last grateful smile at the dog, he flew home once again. If Lois **_had_** been with anyone else then it was time to put his foot down, and let her know that her days as a free woman were over. He was the only man in her bed and life from now on; of course he'd have to put his foot down in a way that didn't get him kicked out pronto, but he'd do it. He'd been giving her time, he'd been giving her space; but screw that for a joke. The softly, softly approach had gotten him nowhere fast. Rolling over, he closed his eyes and fell asleep determined that come tomorrow night, he was going to start reeling her in.

***

Clark came back to the present with a start at the loud burst of masculine laughter; shaking away his introspection, he followed the men to the table and took a seat beside Lois. He liked her friends, a couple he'd he already met, a few he'd only been introduced to when they arrived for the barbeque, but he liked them. Dwayne's wife Julie was a pistol; Lois had barely introduced them when her friend Carly; whom he'd met in Metropolis, came over and towed Lois away to join the rest of the women.

Julie had looked him up and down, smiled knowingly then leant forward and whispered, "Carly's already told us about you, so all us women have been dying to see if she was right; and I can say that she was." At his quirked brow, she smiled in delight "We all know that Lois loves a challenge, and from what I can see for myself, putting it together with what I've heard, you're just the man to give it to her."

"Yep, and just between us; I plan on marrying that woman." He replied quietly enough that his voice wouldn't carry.

Her grin widened appreciatively "Carly said that Lois knows your mom, and used to live with your family?" He inclined his head briefly, she nodded in reply. "So I don't have to worry about her in that respect then." She paused and continued calmly "But just a word of warning; if you hurt her, there'll be a number of people waiting in line to give you what for."

"If I hurt her, then I'll deserve it." He replied honestly.

She looked him in the eye, saw the sincerity in his, and patted him on the arm "I'm glad that she met you again...."

"Not half as glad as I am." He interrupted just as quietly.

She giggled softly "I like you Clark, it's about time that Lo met a man who would shake her up, so good luck" He'd thanked her softly, and grasping him by the arm, she led him over to the group of men standing around the barbeque, before leaving to join the women.

He enjoyed the night very much, the men had all been welcoming, each had complained bitterly about their wives constant talk of him, then asked him one or two questions. When his brows lifted in amusement, all gave him variations on how they'd be hen pecked by their wives if they didn't obtain some information from him. He'd laughed, shared a few details and looked over to see that Lois was receiving the same grilling from her girlfriends.

As it was getting late anyway, the party broke up at the sound of rolling thunder followed by flashes of lightening. Quickly calling out goodnight, Clark and Lois all but ran up the street to her house and made it under the shade of the porch, just as huge gobs of rain began to spatter down.

Quickly unlocking the front door, she sprinted through the house, swiftly opened the back door, and quickly moved aside when Fred dashed in with a whimper, and tried to hide under the kitchen table.

He looked at the huge dog, whose head was the only thing that fit between the chair legs comfortably, noticed his body was all but shaking in terror at each crack of lightening, and rumbling of thunder, looked up at Lois and smirked.

"He's scared stiff of thunder and lightning, all animals are." She defended stoutly, then sat on the floor and began to run her hands over the shaking animals back, soothingly talking to the beast.

His smile turned into a grin and joining her on the floor, he looked between woman and dog, and cocked his head to the side "Does this mean he's going to join us in the bedroom?"

She laughed in reply "No, just give him a few minutes, and he'll trot off to his own bed where he can hide under the blankets or cushions."

He reached out, felt the trembling body and chuffed lightly "I can't believe this big lump is scared of thunder."

"He doesn't know what it is, and you have to admit that last crack of lightning was so loud it even made you jump...I saw it." She tacked on, when he opened his mouth in rebuttal.

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, saw her patient smile and sneered back "So did you."

She laughed and nodded "Yeah."

Lois was right, when it grew silent Fred poked his head out from under the table, but when thunder began to softly rumble once again, and started to gain in volume, the dog flew out and raced to the laundry.

Following they found him in his doggy bed trying to hide his head under a cushion, while his mass quivered in fear. Stepping forward, Lois grabbed a plaid blanket from the pile, tucked it around him, and patted him one last time.

"You don't wanna stay?"

She shook her head "No, but we'll leave the bedroom door open just in case. He's usually fine once he's in here where he feels safe, but there have been the odd occasion when he's crawled into my room and woken me up." She grinned and patted him on the arm "So if you feel someone licking your face looking for attention during the night; it's not me." He grinned in reply, and followed when she returned to the kitchen to lock the back door. Making his way to the front door, Clark ensured that it was likewise locked, and after turning out the hall light, rejoined Lois in the kitchen.

When she began to empty the dishwasher, he shook his head, stepped over, slipped an arm around her waist, and bending down pressed a kiss against the back of her neck "Surely that can wait."

She looked over her shoulder and smiled "It'll only take me a couple of minutes."

Sighing heavily, he slipped his other arm around her waist, and walked with her around the kitchen as she put things away, ignoring her laughing protests as she continued trying to shake him off. Once the dishwasher was empty, and before she could get any further ideas about cleaning up, he ushered her from the kitchen, down the hall and into the bedroom turning off lights in their wake.

Leaving the en-suite light on after their evening ablutions were completed, they crawled into bed and had no sooner settled then he curled around her, and pressed his face into the side of her neck, enjoying the light scent of her body wash.

"I like your friends." Clark said quietly, running his lips up and down her neck, while one hand smoothed gently over her breasts.

"Yeah they're great." She replied absently, reaching back to run her hand over the thigh he'd thrown over her legs.

Turning her onto her back, he slid one hand up her torso, cupped a breast and while looking into her eyes, continued to rub his thumb over and around the nipple "You do realise that we're going to be the main topic of discussion between your girlfriends and their husbands, right?"

She grinned in reply "Of course, it was the same way when my friends met their husband's. I used to lead the interrogation but this time..."

"This time you're going to be it."

"Uh huh." She affirmed running her hands over his back.

"Do you mind?" His back muscles rippled in pleasure at the touch of her hands on his skin.

"I'm a woman, grilling our friends about the men we're seeing is something we do." She murmured absently.

His hand moved to her neglected breast, his fingers began to flirt with the nipple and bending down he swabbed his tongue over the bud his fingers had already teased to hardness. Catching the tip lightly with his teeth, he batted it with his tongue, and when Lois pushed upwards, he gave in and closed his mouth over the flesh to suck strongly before releasing the tip with a last light sip of his lips.

Once done he moved to her other breast, showering it with the same attention he'd previously given its twin, enjoying the way Lois hissed softly in pleasure.

Lifting his mouth, he pressed a kiss against her shoulder, nuzzling his way up her throat "Why didn't I meet Julie and Dwayne and a few others in Metropolis?"

Lois raked her fingers through his hair, and gripped hard "God Clark either talk or...."

"We'll talk later." He replied slipping his arms under her back until his hands were cupping the back of her head, and bending down slanted his lips over hers. When he began to gently abrade his chest against the rigid peaks of her breasts, they groaned into each other's mouths, while their tongues continued to duel, twining and sliding over each others.

Sometimes the sex was fast, other times it was slow and lazy, and that was exactly how he felt right now. The storm outside, the rain lashing against the window, should have made him feel like rushing, instead it put him in a soft unhurried frame of mind. He wanted to take his time, and hoped that Lois felt like that too. The woman was much too much enticement for him, and if she got it into her head to rush, he was done for.

When her hand slid down his torso to the inside of his thigh, he swore silently in his head and decided that he'd have to distract her with all the arsenal that he'd gathered over the past few weeks. As he'd paid careful attention to what gave Lois the most pleasure; he'd learnt what made her mewl in excitement, purr in contentment and what drove her almost crazy. Consequently he also knew exactly how to distract her now, and sliding his lips up the side of her neck, he zeroed in on her earlobe, and hummed in satisfaction when her hand lifted from his thigh to stroke high on his back. Latching onto the lobe gently with his teeth, he removed his arms from under her back, leant up slightly on one arm and used the fingers of his free hand to rake back the hair at the side of her face. Bending down he whispered in her ear exactly what his intentions were; and when she shivered in response, his lips curved.

His lips and tongue played over the lobe gently, and when her nipples tightened even further against his chest; he smiled. He released the lobe, leaving a trail of light moist kisses down the side of her neck, and tugging one of her arms from around his back, pressed his lips against her wrist, nuzzling and nibbling against the pulse point. When the breath caught in her throat, he pressed a last kiss in the palm of her hand, and moved his lips up her arm until he reached her shoulders.

Kissing and licking his way along her collar bone and down, he paused at her breasts and smoothed his hand over them once again. He knew that some women didn't enjoy men touching their breasts but Lois was the complete opposite. She had the most beautiful breasts he'd ever seen; firm full globes with rose coloured nipples, and very sexually sensitive. He trailed his tongue along the undersides, scraped his teeth very gently over the tips, sucked softly on the flesh, before moving his lips into the valley and onto her torso.

Lois was one hell of a sensual woman, everywhere his hands and lips touched, she almost purred in response. Turning her over, he swept aside her hair, nuzzled against the back of her neck, brushed his hands lightly over her back, while his tongue glided smoothly down her spine and his lips peppered moist sweet kisses over her back and down to her hips.

The more excited Lois got, the more her body responded to his touch, which increased and heightened his own sensations. He now wanted to rush, but restrained his impatience determined to finish that which he'd already started.

Turning her over again, he looked at her face, saw the flush of desire on her cheeks and throat, heard the soft pants falling from her lips and smoothing his hand down her torso, slid his fingers into the patch of curls of her mound. Her legs slid open wider, his fingers tangled into the tuft and tugged gently. When she gasped, he bent down, slanted his mouth over hers and slid his tongue inside. He lifted his lips for a moment, then dived back for a longer, deeper kiss before finally lifting his mouth clear and opening his eyes.

His hand moved down and he groaned softly in satisfaction at finding moist soft flesh, revelling in the knowledge that he was the one who caused it. His fingers delved lightly into and over the folds, stroking and caressing her flesh enticing the moisture to flow faster. Pushing one finger inside, he rubbed the inner tissues softly, and explored gently before retracting his finger to lightly stroke over the kernel at the top of her sex.

At her encouraging murmur, he pushed his finger back inside, swirling and teasing the flesh, Lois pushed up against his hand, her inner muscles clamped hard around his finger, his thumb stroked over and around the blood red bud, until with a final breathless pant, her muscles bunched, she pushed up hard against his hand one last time and with a soft cry, fell over the edge.

Gathering her in his arms, he tucked her under him, pressed his lips against her forehead, and pushed gently until he was in her to the base.

"Open your eyes Lo." He requested softly.

When her lashes fluttered up, he saw that her eyes unfocussed and filled with desire.

"Thank you."

"For what?" she asked quietly.

"For agreeing to date only me." He withdrew and pushed back gently inside "I know you were uncomfortable with it, but I don't want you to worry that I'm going to make demands, I just didn't want either of us to be with anyone but each other."

She smiled wryly "I have to admit to wondering if you'd be able to take a casual relationship."

"Casual is one thing, sex is another and you're more than enough woman for me." He murmured huskily, continuing to move gently in and out.

"But it's only until one of us wants to call it quits ok?" She clarified, clamping her legs tighter around his hips.

He nodded, knowing very well that she was his for life; he wasn't going to let her go, nor was he walking away, and Lois would soon find that out if she ever tried to get rid of him. Bending his head, he sealed his lips to hers, and their tongues danced in time to the same lazy rhythm as their bodies until they both fell over the edge. Keeping his arms tucked around her, he rolled onto his back and settled her comfortably on his chest while his hands rubbed gently over her back down to her hips, up and down as she continued to pant softly into his neck.

When her breathing evened, he lifted her off to lie at his side, sat one hand on the side of her face, and pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth. Lois rubbed her hand over his chest and let out one last deep breath "Is the sex going to get mundane anytime soon, because I don't think my heart can take it."

He cocked his head and smiled in return "Your heart sounds just fine to me, but if you want me to, I can try and make it lousy or boring next time."

"You dare." She squeaked in alarm.

He chuckled softly and then grinned when the glint in her eye warned him that she was gearing up for round two. This time Lois took charge, and it was clear that she'd paid just as much attention to what caused him to moan in rapture, beg in delirium, and groan in delight, when she began to pull out each weapon slowly and teased him unmercifully until he was almost howling. By the time she moved to kneel over him, he was almost growling. She chuckled wickedly, and continued to torment him by moving slowly, then speeding up, while her fingers clenched and released against his chest. His hands slid up and down the sides of her waist, but instead of taking over, he let her set the pace, to take what she wanted, knowing that she'd put him out of his misery in her own delightful way.

Seeing the blissful delight on her face, he couldn't help panting out softly "I thought you wanted mundane?"

Her eyes opened, she looked down at him and grinned "I don't think that word works for us." He grinned in return and settling his hands on her hips, let them rest there while she continued to move.

Wrapping his arms around her afterwards, he held her close, nuzzled his nose into the crook of her neck and smiled "If we're going to die of heart failure, at least we've found the best way to do it."

She giggled softly, nodded and yawned before slipping quietly into sleep. Pressing his lips against her cheek, he held her tighter.

He couldn't have borne knowing that Lois was sharing the same intimacies with other men that she'd just shared with him. It might have come to that if he hadn't found her with a date. Considering he'd been so slow in pushing her to be exclusive, there had been nothing to stop her, and he was grateful that the only hurt he'd felt was seeing her with a date, and nothing else. If she'd slept with another man, or even worse if he'd actually seen her in the act, he wasn't sure that he would have been strong enough to withstand the pain; knowing the hurt would have been unbearable.

When she turned around, snuggled into him and pressed her face into the crook of his neck, he crushed her gently closer against his chest, his hands absently smoothed over her back, while his mind once again flew to the previous weekend.

After work on Thursday he flew to Lois' house, closed his eyes tight before opening them to x-ray down and finding her alone, smiled in relief. After scanning the area, he flew down into her back yard, x-rayed to the street, and seeing that no one was around, walked from the back yard, to the front and knocked on the door. Lois had no sooner opened the door then he scooped her up, pressed his mouth against hers and kicked the front door closed with his foot.

Her arms wrapped around his shoulders, his tightened around her waist, while his mouth devoured hers. He lifted one hand to tangle in her hair, lifted his lips to allow her to breathe and dived back for another long deep kiss. Their mouths separated and smiling, he pecked her nose before carrying her into the living room, to take a seat on the couch with Lois held securely in his lap.

"God I needed that." He sighed deeply, rubbing his check against hers.

"What are you doing here?"

"I have tomorrow and Monday off work, and was hoping you wouldn't mind a houseguest for the next four days." He smiled slightly.

She grinned and ran her hand under his t-shirt "Only if kisses like that are on the menu."

"They are." Clark promised, leaning over to seal her mouth with his once again.

"Have you had dinner?" Lois panted softly, tucking her face into his neck when her lips were freed.

"Nope, and yes I'd love some, but first I wanna talk to you."

"About?"

He moved her off his lap, sat her next to him and picking up her hand began to play with her fingers "I just need to clarify something with you."

"Ok."

"You said that our relationship would be casual, right?" She nodded in agreement "Ok, well, does that mean we're allowed to date other people?

Finally understanding his awkwardness, she smiled to put him at ease "Yes, so you don't have to worry that I'm going to enact you a drama with tears and recriminations. We're both free to see whoever we like, ok?"

"No, I think you've misunderstood." At her light frown, he firmed his voice and looked into her eyes "I don't want to see anyone but you Lois, and I was hoping that you felt the same way."

"I see."

He squeezed her hand and when her eyes lifted to his, he saw the wariness "Lois I'm not trying to push you into anything, I just..." He paused and continued quietly "I want us to get to know each other again without any third parties getting in the way."

She nodded minutely and chewed her lip.

"Have you been dating?" He asked quietly, already knowing the answer and felt both relief and hurt at her honesty.

"Yes." She replied simply.

He pressed his lips together, cleared his throat, nodded and asked the question he was scared of hearing the answer to "Sleeping with anyone."

"Does it matter?"

"No, I mean until tonight I haven't brought up the idea of us being exclusive, so if you have then it's ok and ...." He trailed off and sighed "....and that's bullshit. I'm hoping that you haven't, but if you have then you have, and I'll...." He coughed lightly "I'll be ok with it, as long as I'm the only man you'll be sleeping with in future."

Lois shook her head lightly "Clark you agreed..."

He held up his hand and cut her off "I know Lois, I know what I agreed to, but now I want to redefine the terms of our relationship."

"Redefine the terms as in....?"

He grasped her chin gently and looked her straight in the eye "As in I don't want you dating anyone else, and I sure as hell don't want you sleeping with anyone but me."

"You can too." She pointed out.

"I don't want to." He replied bluntly.

Not hearing any demands in his voice, just a simple request Lois couldn't help but soften. She didn't want a relationship, and that's what this was beginning to sound like, but had to silently admit that although she'd been dating, it was Clark's company that she'd missed. She missed him during the week, hated turning over at night and not finding him lying beside her, missed laughing and talking with him; she just plain missed him.

She'd continued dating when she realised that Clark was getting to her, she didn't want anyone to get to her, but he was. The men she'd been seeing were nice, charming and attractive but not one of them made her feel special, stirred her up, or feel much of anything really. When Mark had kissed her last night she'd felt nothing, and although she'd told Fred off, she was glad that he'd interrupted.

"Well?" Clark prodded softly.

Ignoring the swirling in her gut, she blew out a deep breath and decided to treat the situation lightly "Are you asking me to go steady?"

Sensing that she might be giving in, and feeling that it was time to sound less intense, he let his lips crook up in a small smile "Kind off, but I don't have a class ring for you to wear."

Lois snorted softly in response "Sure you do, you just wanna keep it for yourself so when you feel like breaking out, all you have to do is slip on the ring with the little red rock and go crazy." She finished with a light laugh.

He laughed but shook his head "I got rid of that damned thing years ago." Sobering after a moment, he pressed her hand lightly "So what'd you say?" When she smiled hesitantly, he lifted up the hand he was holding, and waved it before casually prompting "I'm not asking you to wear my class ring." He hoped like hell that she went for it, because he couldn't take another night like the last one.

"Ok."

"Ok?" At her nod, he silently let out the breath he'd been holding in check.

She kept her eyes steady on his, and continued firmly "But Clark, if either of us changes our mind we have to be honest about it, ok? I'd much rather you tell me if you wanna see someone else than go behind my back; and I'll give you the same consideration. Honesty may hurt, but cheating hurts a hell of a lot more."

At her words he wondered if an unfaithful husband was a ghost that he had to fight, and mentally pushed up his sleeves for the battle "I wouldn't cheat on you Lo, but I agree, so yes." He replied and felt even better when she relaxed.

Lois smiled at the sincerity in his voice, and feeling that he deserved an answer to his earlier question replied simply "I haven't."

"Haven't what?" He knew what she was referring to, but needed to hear her say it.

"I haven't slept with anyone but you since our first time. I've dated and they've kissed me but that's all." She replied patiently.

He felt his heart unclench, sighed in relief and nodded "I haven't either; I think you've spoiled me for anyone else."

She grinned and raised her brows "My dates were all boring."

"Good." He commented steadily without a hint of apology, and when she laughed he scooped an arm around her waist, pulled her into his lap and kissed her firmly "I'm glad you were bored."

"Have some sympathy." She scolded lightly "I nearly fell asleep during one."

"Even better." Her pressed his lips to her chin and looked her in the eye "You're not getting any sympathy from me. I'm glad they were boring, and even more pleased there won't be anymore."

She chuckled and shook her head "Typical man; now how about we have some dinner?"

"Ok, but I've gotta get something first; I'll be back in a few minutes ok?" Without giving her time to reply, he left and returned shortly afterwards.

While Lois was in the kitchen pulling dishes out of the oven, he stepped outside to greet Fred. The dog trotted over, woofed, and lifted his head for a scratch. After doing so, Clark pulled the bag out from behind his back, and withdrew a huge meaty ham bone "I got this for you Fred; you definitely deserve it."

Fred woofed again, grasped the bone in his teeth and began to enjoy.

Coming back to the present, Clark rubbed his cheek against the top of Lois' head and let out a deep heartfelt sigh. Stage two was done and it had gone even better than he'd imagined. Lois had told him that she'd missed him during the week, admitted that seeing other men wasn't what she wanted, and even better, slowly seemed to be coming around to his way of thinking. Stage three was next; almost but not quite moving in with her. Grinning, he pecked her cheek and drifted off to sleep, satisfied that everything he wanted and needed was right now sleeping in his arms.


	14. Chapter 14

As I haven't received any feedback since the last update, I don't know if people really like this story, or are just reading it to kill some time. If you are enjoying this story please let me know, otherwise I'll assume that no one wants it, and my time can be utilised more productively with writing rather than posting.

Linda

**

**Chapter 14**

_Three weeks later_

Everything had been going so well, too well. Lois and he were dating exclusively, he seemed to be winning her over slowly; and life couldn't have been better. So it only made sense that it all had to hit the fan sooner or later. He'd been hoping it wouldn't happen until after he managed to get his ring on her finger; then at least she could yell and storm at him all she liked, but he wouldn't have to worry about where he'd be sleeping that night, nor would she be able to get away. Not that she was getting away now; he just had to figure out how to charm her back, without looking like a complete dickhead.

He was supposed to be on his way to her place to spend the weekend. He'd been hoping to slowly coax her into letting him stay a couple of nights during the week as well, but after listening to her message on his answer machine, he figured that he'd be lucky if she let him sleep with Fred.

He hit play again, cringed and shook his head. Ok, he needed help; he needed the kind of help only others in the business could give. Correction: others who were men and would know how to charm back their lady love, without losing their self esteem in the process.

Unfortunately his only real experience in dealing with an angry girlfriend or partner was Lana, and she'd enjoyed it when he grovelled. She'd enjoyed it less when he eventually told her to fuck off; but he'd certainly relished the experience. However, Lois was a very different woman to his ex-wife; Lois would never respect a man who allowed himself be used as a doormat, and he never intended to be that again either. So if he wanted to keep her esteem and gain her love, then he needed advice on how to soothe down her ruffled feathers, without looking like a total loser in the process.

Knowing exactly where he could get said advice, he spun into the suit, flew out his apartment window, and made straight for the Watchtower.

Stopping on the threshold to the main room, he was relieved to find only the men were present. The fact that they were all talking about him and Lois was kind of deflating, but deciding that his best course of action was just to brazen it out; he walked into the room and called out a general greeting "Hey guys."

The men stopped talking, turned to look at him, turned back to each other and nodded.

"He's in the dog house." Bart declared loudly.

"Oh yeah, he's in deep shit." AC confirmed with twitching lips.

His shoulders drooped "Yeah I am." Clark sighed, took a seat at the table, and rested his chin in his hand "You are talking about me right?"

"Uh huh, so how bad is it?"

"It's not that bad." He replied sulkily.

"Bull." Victor retuned succinctly "If it wasn't that bad, you wouldn't be here chatting with us, you'd be snuggling up with Lois, so spill."

"I spend time with you guys." He felt insulted at the slur that he didn't have time for his friends.

"Not on the weekends man; we all know that unless it's a Superman emergency, or we make specific plans to get together; come Friday night you're unavailable." AC held up a hand at Clark's frown "Hey we're all just jealous that we don't have someone soft and feminine to cuddle up with on the weekends; if we did, we'd plan our buddy time around that too, so don't worry about it."

Nodding, he raked a hand through his hair "I don't have anyone this weekend either; I don't think." Huffing out a deep breath, he tapped his fingers on the table "Why are women so.... grrrr." He finished, shaking his hands in frustration.

"Maybe it's that time of the month?" Bruce chimed in helpfully.

"For the love of everything holy, don't even suggest that to her." Oliver recommended with a slight shiver.

"I'm with Oliver, don't even go there man." Victor agreed with a rapid headshake.

"Well I think it's insulting and crass of you to even suggest that Bruce, and what's worse is that Oliver and Victor actually gave your boorish assumption validity, by making it sound like Lois shouldn't even be offended by such an asinine theory in the first place." Bart declared loudly, then turned and muttered to Clark "X-ray around buddy, make sure none of the women have arrived, and are secretly listening in."

The men all sat up straight, eyes wide and alert with fear.

After a quick scan of the watchtower, Clark gave the good news "No, we're good; they're not here."

After slouching back in their seats, Bart patted Clark on the back "Oh well in that case, I agree with Oliver and Victor; if you value your hide, don't even imply that might be the reason."

"You're a coward Bart." Bruce sneered with a wide grin.

"You bet." He agreed swiftly without even a hint of shame "I made the mistake of telling an ex that maybe her monthly was the reason for her nutso behaviour once. Well the look she threw in my direction, made my balls wanna curl up and hide."

Each man automatically crossed their legs in alarm and protection.

"Yeah, and that's why she's an ex." Bart nodded meaningfully "It's also why I defend women loudly against that accusation, until I know for sure there aren't any around."

"I think we've all been on the receiving end of that look, and maybe adopting your practice is a good idea." AC put in thoughtfully while all the men bar one nodded.

Bruce shook his head incredulous "Are you superheroes or yellow bellied cowards?"

"Can't we be both?" Oliver tapped his chin thoughtfully "Superheroes when there's some ass to be kicked; and cowards when there's some woman's ass we need to kiss?"

"Well as you know discretion is the better part of valour." Clark reminded them all pointedly "So we're not being cowards; just....prudent."

Bruce rolled his eyes and let out a scoffing laugh.

"Tell you what Buddy, the next time Dianna's a little pissy, why don't you be the brave Dark Knight, and ask her if she's got her period." Bart smirked.

They all looked at Bruce with brows lifted in patient mockery, enjoying the way he shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

Bruce pulled at his shirt collar, smiled weakly and hoping to change the subject, got back to the matter at hand "So Clark, are you gonna tell us what Lois said when she kicked you out?"

"She didn't kick me out...yet." Clark replied wounded, then ducked his head "I'm supposed to spend the weekend with her but..." He coughed and smiled "....but I was wondering if maybe I should give her a couple of days to cool down before going to make up."

"So you're here to hang with the guys and play poker, until Lois cools down?" AC clarified slowly.

"Um I ah....yeah and um I was thinking, maybe you guys could give me a little advice." He scratched his cheek absently, but refused to meet anyone's eyes.

"Well why don't you tell us exactly what happened and we'll try and help." Bruce obligingly suggested.

Considering he'd already heard them all talking, he knew that asking was pointless but couldn't help looking at each man hopefully in turn "Does that mean you haven't seen the news?"

At the quick grins, cleared throats and eye rolling he received in reply, Clark figured he had his answer already. However, that wasn't going to stop his friends from rubbing it in.

Oliver grinned quick and bright "Oh we've seen the news, I'd say that everyone in the worlds seen it. But the stories are kind of conflicted, so if you want our help, we need to know what really happened."

Clark winced and closed his eyes "How bad has it been; I've only caught a few sound bites and they were awful, but I haven't had the courage to actually look, or take any calls from mom and Chloe. Thank god the work day was almost finished and I didn't have to go back to the Planet afterwards, because I know that everyone there would have been talking as well."

"Oh it hasn't been bad at all; it's been very entertaining actually." Oliver cocked his head to the side inquisitively "So tell me; did Superman really tell Lois Lane to shut up?"

Clark's head drooped before bobbing up and down.

"Man you are in deep doggy doo." Victor shook his head pitifully.

He looked up, saw his friends faces, and his contorted in agreement "Yeah, and considering the size of Lois' dog, it really is deep."

AC patted his friend's back in commiseration "The news has been full of people saying that Superman saved them from an incompetent bank robber, but it wasn't seeing Supes in action they found so fascinating, it was watching him fight with his girlfriend."

He groaned and rubbed his hands over his face "Shit."

"It didn't take long for Lois to become your girlfriend." Bart put in politely.

"She said that she wasn't." He riposted; feeling both hopeful that would help squash the rumour mill, and crestfallen that she'd been so adamant about it.

"Everyone who was there said that Superman and Lois had a lover's spat, and when she yelled that she wasn't your girlfriend, you yelled back even louder that she was." Victor put in helpfully.

Bruce tapped the table with his finger "Actually to be precise, he roared back; like hell you're not." He finished with a straight face.

"I did shut up...kind off...after it was all over; and I didn't speak to the media." He replied weakly.

"Yes, you seem to have contracted laryngitis, only after you'd already let the cat out of the bag Clark." Oliver replied dryly.

"Way to be discreet man." Victor guffawed, cuffing his friend on the arm.

He sighed once again, and scrubbed his hands over his face "Yeah, and now Lois is beyond pissed."

"What's she pissed about exactly? That you told her to shut up, or that you told her she was your girlfriend, or that you told everyone she was your girlfriend. Those are three different things to be pissed about." AC questioned curiously.

Clark looked at his friends "I need help."

"Well as Oliver said before, the stories are kind of conflicting. See at the moment there are two camps, the men's and the women's; and as such there are two different views about what was actually said. The only thing they all agree on is that Superman and Lois Lane had a lover's quarrel, and she is most definitely his girlfriend." Bruce smiled kindly at his friend and coaxed persuasively "So we'll be happy to help you out, but we need to know exactly what happened first."

Bobbing his head, Clark exhaled heavily and began explaining "See this afternoon I was at work....."

Everyone sat forward interested. From the time Lois Lane and Superman's squabble had hit the news, each man had been dying to hear the whole story.

_Earlier in the day_

Clark couldn't stop from smiling as he typed up his story; this was a beauty, it wasn't Pulitzer worthy but it was still worth a few kudos. Perry had been pleased, then again his editor was always pleased when they beat the competition; not that Perry considered The Star worthy of being called competition.

His fingers flew over the keyboard gleefully, he'd had to slow down once or twice when Chloe hissed at him to remember that he was in public, but he was too excited. This was his first exclusive from start to finish; this story would have only his name under the heading, and he found it hard to temper the burst of satisfaction he felt.

Once the story was finished, he scanned it over, checked it again and again, before emailing it to Perry, then sat back feeling quite chuffed with himself.

He grabbed his mug, pushed back his chair, and walked towards the kitchen when the news on the TV finally penetrated his consciousness. Almost simultaneously, he felt a sinking feeling in his gut, his heart wobbled and remembering that the last time he'd felt like this Lois had been in danger, he rushed towards the stairwell and was gone.

He flew as fast as he could to Seattle, stopped above the bank, saw the police cars surrounding the building, saw that the area had been cordoned off, and after x-raying through the bank walls felt his heart tilt once again. He saw a room full of people; one of whom was Lois sitting on the floor, while an armed man told the teller behind the counter to hurry up.

It was obvious the idiot hadn't given any thought to what the hell he was doing. When the teller put the bags on the counter, the thief looked between the gun he held in one hand, to the door that pulled inwards, to the three full bags and groaned. Clearly he'd given no thought to the fact that to get out of the bank with the money and a weapon; he'd need at least one free hand.

Clark watched with interest wondering what the guy was going to do, then shook his head in resignation when Lois began to call out helpful suggestions.

The man looked at Lois, waved his gun and told her to stuff it; which of course just encouraged her to be even more disparaging. Deciding he'd better go down there before she got her fool head blown off, he swooped down and flew through the window coming to a stop between the thief and Lois.

Turning side on to keep an eye on the thief, but ensuring that Lois knew he meant business, he stood in his Superman stance and glared at his love.

She got to her feet and smiled at him "It's about time you got here."

He was in no mood to be charmed and glowered in return "It's about time I got here, is that all you can say?"

"Umm, thank you." Her winsome smile dropped off her face at his next words.

"Thank you." He snorted back rudely "God Lois, can't you shut up even when a lunatic is pointing a gun at your head."

"Shut up, did you just tell me to shut up?!" She hissed back, glaring daggers at him.

"Yeah I did. What the hell did you think you were doing?" He demanded, casually reaching out to take the gun and crushing it.

"I was giving him suggestions on how to get out of here." She returned snottily, then added for good measure "And his gun was nowhere near my head."

"You were just trying to needle him is what you were doing." He countered back flatly.

"I was trying to be helpful."

"Bull." He raked a hand through his hair in exasperation "You're 35 Lois, when are you going to learn to keep quiet and be discreet."

Her eyes turned to slits "You dare to drag my age into this?"

"I'm just saying that you...."

"I know exactly what you were saying; you're saying that I'm old." She cut in with a growl.

"I didn't say that you were ol..."

"Hey you two, have you forgotten that we have a situation here?" The thief cut in waving his empty hand around, then shrugged uncomfortably when the patrons looked at him and rolled their eyes, before turning back to catch the rest of the conversation between the superhero and the woman.

"Shut up!"

"Butt out!"

They turned and yelled at the perpetrator simultaneously, before turning back to each other once again.

"Gees, I thought _I had_ issues with my girlfriend" He muttered loudly enough for everyone to hear.

Lois looked at the crook, pointed at Clark and shouted "I am not his girlfriend."

"Yes you are."

"Like hell I am." She yelled, whipping back and shoving her face closer to his.

"_**Like hell you're not**_." He bellowed louder, moving his face closer to hers.

"If you don't want him honey; I'll take him." A buxom blonde called out.

"He's all yours." Lois sniffed disparagingly then turned back to Clark "Well don't just stand there, make yourself useful and stop him before he runs away?"

"And where's he gonna run to Lois, to all the cops that are waiting for him outside?" Clark asked sarcastically, before picking the thief up, moving him to the corner, grabbing the flag that was standing there and tying him up, before stomping back to stand in front of her once again "Happy?"

"Ecstatic." She snorted back rudely.

The bank guard stepped outside to give the all clear, the patrons got their feet, the police came in and cuffed the robber, but instead of anyone moving or talking, all stood and watched the floor show that was still going on between Superman and the woman.

Lois poked Clark in the chest then poked him again for good measure "Well what are you waiting for, you've stopped him; so you can just go to wherever it is you go."

"I'm not going anywhere until we settle this." He folded his arms tighter.

"We have settled this; you think I'm old and need to shut up." She replied pugnaciously.

"I didn't say that you were old." He gritted out between his teeth.

He and Lois kept stormy eyes locked; the bank was dead silent as everyone waited wondering what was going to happen next.

The blonde who'd called out earlier slinked over, wrapped an arm around his waist, rubbed her boob against his arm and smiled "Don't go anywhere without me honey; she did say that you were all mine." His lips quirked when she put her hand on his upper arm, squeezed and her eyes became round with delight "Wow, you're all muscle."

Lois snorted and cut in nastily "Don't waste your time Bambi, unless you're under 20, he'll just think you're too old."

"I did not say that you were old." He snarled in frustration.

"You implied it." She shot back.

"My names not Bambi."

"Take the blonde Superman; she's younger so she's still trainable." The thief called out encouragingly.

"Trainable….trainable?!" Lois screeched, swinging around to face the man.

"Yeah, and she's also stacked." He taunted deliberately.

"Are you saying that I'm not stacked?" She demanded wrathfully.

"Oh baby you are; hubba, hubba." He heard one cop mutter under his breath to his partner, right before the thief hollered back "You're a loud mouthed broad."

The cops jumped in front of the guy, he quickly wrapped one arm arms around Lois' waist and held her back; thanking god for super quick reflexes and strength as she began to wiggle against his arm.

"Let me go!"

"What are you gonna do?"

"I'm going to kick him, and then I'm going to punch him, and then I'm going to kick him again." She yelled, shooting the guy a venomous look.

The idiot certainly had a death wish or just felt safe in police hands. As they began to lead him out, he called back one last time "Take my advice and dump the brunette Superman; I had a girlfriend like her once and she didn't know when to shut up either."

"I AM NOT HIS GIRLFRIEND!!" Lois shrieked back.

"I am now." The blonde sang out cheerfully.

While the police were dragging the man out, Lois was still straining against his hold, the blonde was still batting her eyes at him, he was silently berating himself, and the patrons began to whisper and argue amongst themselves.

"_He didn't say that she was old, he just said that she needed to shut up." _

"_He insinuated that she was old."_

"_He didn't, he just said that being 35 she should know better."_

"_Well he shouldn't have referred to her age young man, I'm older than her and I don't appreciate that remark." _

"_Now Thelma he never said that she was old."_

"_Oh hush, and turn your hearing aid up George, he said that she was old."_

"_My hearing aid is up, and he just said that she was his girlfriend."_

"_He said that she was old and his girlfriend."_

"_Why do women only hear what they want to? He never said that she was old."_

Listening to them, he wanted to bang his head against the wall. He wished, really and truly wished that just like in Groundhog Day, everyone would forget this day had ever happened.

_Present_

"So you see guys, I really need help." He looked at his friends, noted they were all snickering and called out "Guys!"

"Just how stacked was the blonde?" Bart asked curiously.

"You didn't see her on the news?" Clark asked dryly.

"Yeah, but describe her anyway."

He glared at Bart humourless "Look this isn't funny; Lois is really angry."

Knowing they had to help their friend out of the jam he'd gotten himself into; throats were cleared and faces sobered.

"Clark didn't you learn anything about women from your ex-wife?"

"Only what turns me off." He replied in a tone so grave, that the men had to bite the inside of their cheeks to keep their countenance.

"Well here's something that you need to know..." AC enunciated his words carefully, and shook his head slowly for emphasis "...a man never, EVER drags a woman's age into an argument; no matter how much or little the provocation."

"But I only said…."

"Nuh!" Oliver held up his finger.

"I only meant…"

"Uh!" Victor raised his hand.

His face contorted and he almost wailed "I didn't mean anything by it."

The men looked at each other, sighed and just shook their heads in pity.

Oliver tapped his friend on the shoulder and spoke clearly "Um Clark maybe I should have warned you, but the media loves to speculate about superheroes; they want to know if we have a significant other, what we do in our spare time, etc, etc, etc." At his nod, Oliver continued "So the first rule about the superhero business is to ensure the media _**doesn't**_ get any information about your personal life."

He grimaced and looked at his friend shamefaced, then swung his eyes to the next person who began to speak.

"Superman is big news, you might not have noticed this, but since his first appearance the media have been on a frenzy to find out any personal details about him that they can. They're particularly interested in knowing if he has a special lady in his life, especially since he doesn't seem to be in Metropolis on the weekends, but does tend to pop up in Seattle more often than not." Bruce finished sardonically.

Clark raked a hand through his hair and groaned.

"And now that people have heard Superman call Lois Lane his girlfriend, and those people told the news crews who were waiting outside the bank..." Bart trailed off and nudged the friend sitting next to him

"And the newshounds have found out that Lois lives in Seattle, she has now been dubbed Superman's girlfriend all over the media, all around the world." Victor finished dryly.

"Shit." Clark swore long and succinctly in his head "I was just so....."

"What?"

"I was just relieved that she was ok, and angry that she'd been so mouthy to the guy who was holding the gun, that I just spoke without thinking." He replied blowing out a deep breath.

"Uh huh, are you saying there wasn't a tiny part of you that wasn't ticked off, because Lois declared aloud that she wasn't your girlfriend?" AC asked politely and when Clark flushed, he inclined his head.

"Well I'd say that you've got a couple of problems. You don't want everyone believing that Lois really is Superman's girlfriend, and I'm guessing that you wanna get back into her good books as well, right?" Bruce asked calmly.

"Yes to both, but how the hell do I stop the Lois is Superman's girlfriend train, now that it's already started?"

"You could take the blonde up on her offer." Bart put in helpfully, but sobered at the look of rebuke shot his way "Sorry, look maybe you could play up to a few other women, and then the media will just think that Superman's a bit of a super-stud."

"Forget it." Clark replied flatly.

"If you try to tell the media that you and Lois aren't involved, they're just going to believe that you are." Oliver said seriously.

"I know."

"Look Clark, I'm not going to say it wasn't funny because the whole thing just sounds like a huge farce, but unless you find a way to stop the media in its tracks..."

"I know Bruce." Clark nodded and swiped a hand over his face "On the one hand I think maybe it'll help; especially when Lois interviews criminals for her books. I'd like to think they'd think twice before trying anything if they believe she has a super-boyfriend, but on the other hand she'll be hounded everywhere she goes." He rubbed his chin and grimaced "Lois is beyond pissed; after I left the bank I flew around for a while making myself useful, and when I got home I had a message on my answer machine from her. First she thanked me nicely for telling the world that she was my girlfriend, then she yelled that her message machine is full of calls from the media who want to talk to her about our relationship, then she screeched that all her friends want to know if she's dating Clark and/or Superman."

"Yow." Victor shivered "Well here's my advice for what it's worth; go and make up with Lois tonight, don't give her time to cool down, because more than likely all she'll do is get angrier, especially if she just keeps getting more and more calls." Clark nodded in agreement and noted the others were doing likewise.

"It sounds like you were both at fault about the argument though." Bart put in with a light frown.

He nodded slowly "Yeah, I mean it was pretty obvious the thief was an idiot, but when Lois started needling him, it pissed me off."

"It pissed you off because you were scared."

"Yeah, usually when I save someone I'm happy that I made it in time, this time I was angry because idiot or not, the guy could have killed her."

"Maybe you need to tell her that." AC suggested quietly.

"Did you ever get angry at Lana for almost getting killed?" Oliver asked curiously.

Clark sneered lightly "Nope, not only is Lana too wimpy to take anyone on, but when she needed help I was just glad to be the one to save her, and that was it. Lana only ever stirred the most shallow of emotions in me; she needed to be looked after, I was a hero blah blah..." His lips hitched up in a soft smile "Lois is the only one who's ever managed to pull all the deeper emotions out of me. She did it when we were kids, and she started doing it again when I saw her in the restaurant."

"Maybe that's why you liked Lana when you were a kid." Bruce replied thoughtfully "From everything you've said, and from what I've heard, you felt like an outsider right?" Clark nodded in agreement "And Lana needed to be saved every freaking day from someone or something, correct?" He rolled his eyes and nodded again "Ok, so maybe subconsciously you thought that if you could get this normal pretty girl to fall for you, then you'd feel less like an outsider, and more accepted. The fact that she made you feel like a hero was the icing."

Clark let out a laughing groan and scrubbed a hand over his face "Yeah Bruce I think you're right."

The men all chuckled lightly, gave Clark a few more words of advice, and when he rose to go and see Lois, they sent him off with good luck wishes.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Clark flew to Seattle, x-rayed down, saw Lois was at home and decided he'd get her some flowers before approaching her. Five minutes later, he rang the doorbell and when she answered, he thrust the flowers at her.

"Hi Lo, I know how much you love flowers so I got you these." He put on the best charming smile in his arsenal.

She looked at the flowers, looked at him and folded her arms.

"I'm sorry Lois, I didn't mean to yell at you, and I didn't mean anything about your age, I was just scared that you could have been killed and..."

She sighed, held the door open wider and waved him inside. He stepped over the threshold, and held out the flowers, feeling relieved when she took them from him.

"What happened to Bambi?"

"C'mon Lo, you know that I'm not interested in her."

"Oh why not, she's stacked....and younger than me." Lois muttered the last under her breath.

His lips twitched "You're a lot more stacked than Bambi, and I'm not interested in anyone younger or older; just you."

"I'm a loud mouthed broad remember, one who doesn't know when to shut up or be discreet."

"I'm sorry for telling you to shut up, and considering I opened my big trap and said that you were Superman's girlfriend, I won't ever say anything about you not being discreet again." He crossed his chest in the promise sign, noted that she'd softened slightly, and sighed silently "I'm sorry Lo..."

"So am I." She cut in with a soft smile "I've gotten so used to dealing with criminals that I can usually tell when they have it in them to hurt others. That guy was an idiot, and I could see that he didn't, but I shouldn't have goaded him; especially when there were other people around who could have been hurt." She sighed and blew out a deep breath "Being reckless with my own life is one thing, but with others it's just not on. You were right; I'm old enough to know better."

He put an arm around her waist and pulled her to him "So am I." Bending down he captured her lips with his; humming in his throat when her arms lifted to encircle his neck.

After their mouths broke apart, she buried her face in the flowers and smiled "These are really pretty, thank you; so where'd you get them?"

He coughed lightly and shrugged "I picked them."

Lois nodded slowly while her smile grew bigger "Oh from where?"

"From your back garden" He replied with a sheepish smile.

She giggled softly "I was watching you from the bedroom window." He grinned in return and knowing that all was well, leant down and kissed her cheek gently.

***

Retiring to the lounge room with glasses of wine after dinner, the two discussed what they should do about the media. She was all for confronting them; he thought discretion should be their watchword.

"It's a bit late for discretion don't you think?" Lois asked patiently.

"Yeah, but if we try to refute it, they'll just twist our words and make it even worse." Clark negated sipping his wine and sighing.

"Clark, we're damned if we do and damned if we don't." Lois shrugged and smiled wryly "If we don't give them something they're just going to keep hounding us; and if we don't say anything at all, they'll just make up any old crap to make the story even juicier."

"Yeah but...."

"Your friends are fine because they know the truth, but do you really want my friends to think you're ok with me doing you and Superman at the same time; or even worse seeing him behind your back?" She asked pointedly.

He grimaced and shook his head "No but surely if you explain to them..."

Her brow flew up "How do I explain to them that I'm not Superman's girlfriend, without telling them you're him; when it's all over the media that he and I had a lovers tiff?"

"Shit; I really messed up huh?"

"We both messed up, and now we need to try and stop it before it gets out of hand." Lois replied patting his arm in solidarity.

He smiled and nodded "Ok, but we have to be careful Lo, we both know what reporters are like; if we give them an opening we're done for."

"That's why we're not going to give them an opening." She replied confidently.

"Lo you know what people are like; no matter what we say now, some people are still going to believe it anyway." He shook his head and sighed deeply "Unfortunately it doesn't help that I've been seen in Seattle, more than anywhere else on the weekends."

"True, so why don't you stay in Metropolis on the weekends, we can call it quits and go back to dating whoever we like." She asked lightly.

"No to all three." He shot back swiftly "One, we're not calling it quits so you can forget about that. Two, we're only dating each other; you agreed. And three, my not coming here to spend the weekend with you isn't even an option; I just thought I'd mention that Superman's been seen in Seattle at lot."

"Forget about that?" She enquired gently.

"What?" He hoped that playing dumb would work, but quickly found that she wasn't about to let him off the hook so easily.

"You said we're not calling it quits, so I can forget about that." She prompted with lifted brow.

Clark decided this was definitely the time for discretion, and shrugged casually "Sorry Lo, I didn't mean to sound so overbearing, I only meant that if we choose to call it quits, it'll be our decision and not one that's been foisted onto us."

When she nodded in understanding, he smiled in return; _try getting rid of me babe, and you'll soon find out that I meant it when I told you to forget about that_; he silently tacked on.

Gesturing with her glass, Lois got back to the subject at hand "Look the media were already wondering why Superman was spotted in Seattle so often on the weekends right?" He nodded in accord "So we just have to make up a reason for why he's been here."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair "What reason?"

"I don't know, we'll think up some crap, but if we don't try and stop the speculation about us right now, it'll just get bigger and bigger and then it _will_ be too late to worry about damage control." She returned in the same manner.

He exhaled heavily and nodded. Reaching out he picked up her hand, squeezed it and smiled crookedly "Do you mind being my girlfriend?"

"Are you talking about people thinking I'm Superman's girlfriend, or are you referring to yourself?" She questioned.

"Both...either."

"There's nothing we can do about the Superman one, as you pointed out, people will believe whatever they like, no matter what we say."

"And mine?"

"So you think of me as your girlfriend huh?"

He nodded, put down his glass, picked her up out of her seat and settled her on his lap "Yeah."

"Well it has its compensations" She whispered, unbuttoning his shirt to slip her hand inside.

He grinned and likewise slipped his hand under her skirt to settle it warmly on her thigh "So you're ok with it?"

"What if I say no?" She asked with a soft laugh, trailing her lips along his jaw-line.

"Then I'm just going to have to change your mind." Standing up he carried her into the bedroom, and shortly afterwards, their soft laughter and the rustle of sheets was the only sound in the otherwise quiet house.

_Next Day: Press Conference_

Clark stood silently beside Lois in his regulation Superman stance; legs slightly apart, arms folded, head lifted proudly. He thought it was a shame that his cape wasn't billowing slightly, as that would have been the perfect touch to give him an air of distinction. He kept his expression poker straight but amiable, while his ears stayed glued to the horde of reporters, gauging their reactions to Lois' words.

"Are you trying to tell us that you're not Superman's girlfriend Ms Lane; come now, isn't it a bit late to try and fool everyone? I mean he yelled that you were in front of a room full of people." One reporter scoffingly pointed out.

Lois nodded in a long suffering fashion "I know but Superman and I got a little confused. You see the term girlfriend doesn't mean the same thing on Krypton, as it does here on earth. So when the thief referred to me as Superman's girlfriend, I said that I wasn't, Superman said that I was; and neither of us realised we were talking about two different things." She paused and shook her head "It was all a big misunderstanding which we've now resolved."

"How?" Another reporter asked sceptically.

"We talked about it. As you can imagine I wasn't happy that Superman called me his girlfriend when I've already got a boyfriend; believe me he was **really** ticked off. Superman meanwhile heard the media reports, and felt uncomfortable at the implications that were being said." She paused and shook her head "Last night my boyfriend arrived on my doorstep demanding to know what the hell was going on, Superman turned up for the same reason, and when the three of us talked about it, we had to laugh when we realised that it was simply a language barrier problem between Krypton and Earth."

"What does the word 'girlfriend' mean on Krypton Ms Lane?"

Lois hitched her thumb in Clark's direction "Ask him."

When everyone turned to him curiously, Clark smiled weakly and silently begged Lois to help him out. Sighing softly she smiled at the reporters "Superman was almost red with embarrassment when he realised that he'd gaffed so badly in the bank yesterday; so I'll try and explain if you don't mind?" At their nods and eager faces, she schooled herself sternly, suppressed any hint of amusement and continued "It doesn't really translate easily, but apparently when a person was called a 'girlfriend' on Krypton, basically you were calling them a pain in the ass." At the snickers around the room, she nodded and rolled her eyes "Yeah, so when I yelled that I wasn't, and he yelled even louder that I was; he was pretty much calling me a huge pain in his ass because I'd been taunting the robber; isn't that right Superman?" She turned to him with a straight face, and eyes that were shadowed, but he could see the mirth she was hiding, and had to suppress the laughter that wanted to burst out of his chest.

Clark coughed and nodded, Lois patted him helpfully on the back "I think he has a bug in his throat, either that or he's just shy about using the word ass." She snickered under her breath, pounded him harder on the back and asked loudly "Better?"

His face remained grave, but his eyes smiled into Lois' for a moment, before he schooled his features and turned to address the reporters "I apologise ladies and gentleman, I'm not very comfortable using the slang word for bottom." He noted their amusement, and allowed a shy smile to peak out "Unfortunately, as I haven't been on Earth for long, I didn't realise that some of the words you use here, have a very different meaning to those used on my home planet; as such I'm afraid I made a mistake and referred to Ms Lane by a Kryptonian word that I shouldn't have."

"What does 'boyfriend' mean on Krypton?" One nosey reporter called out.

Clark thought furiously for a second and burst out loudly "You're pissing me off!" Then promptly flushed bright red at the responding yell "I was only asking; you don't have to be so damn rude."

Lois snorted, gulped back her laughter and chimed in "No, he's telling you that's what the word 'boyfriend' means on Krypton."

"Oh; sorry."

Clark bit the inside of his cheek, but dipped his head regally, accepting the apology.

"So if you and Ms Lane aren't dating Superman, how come you've been spending so much time here in Seattle?"

He smiled genially, relieved to have an answer at the ready "As you all know, a few months ago I made my appearance when I saved Ms Lane. Later we talked and I told her about myself and my planet Krypton, which she wrote an article about for the Daily Planet." Everyone nodded but kept looking between them "After I finished telling her about my world, she told me about Earth and in particular Seattle, where she lives. As I haven't been on your lovely planet for long, and would very much like to become better acquainted with it, I decided to spend what free time I have by getting to know your world. Since Ms Lane had told me more about Seattle than anywhere else, that's where I decided to start."

"By why are you only in Seattle on the weekends?"

He shook his head gently "I'm not only here on the weekends, there have been the odd occasions when I've been here during the week as well, as you know by some of the news stories that you yourselves have covered." They all looked at each other and nodded in agreement. Feeling extremely grateful that he'd had a couple of days off during the week and had spent them in Seattle, Clark continued calmly "However, as I have to take my free time when I can; quite often that just happens to be on the weekends."

"Superman, you mentioned Ms Lane's age yesterday, are you discriminatory against women of a certain age?" One female reporter called out militantly.

Hearing the combative tone, Clark smiled charmingly, and hoped it would soothe the savage beast "No, not at all." Seeing the light of battle hadn't faded from the woman's eyes, he decided that charm could fuck off, he'd lie "As age is immaterial on Krypton, I truly didn't realise that my remark could give offence here on Earth. However, having realised that I insulted Ms Lane, I have apologised to her, and would likewise wish to do so to all the other ladies here on Earth as well."

Although most of the reporter's indignation had faded, Lois stepped forward to calm the woman down once and for all "Superman really didn't mean any offence, he was just trying to point out that as I'm not a child, I should have known better than to taunt a man with a gun. As much as I didn't like it at the time, I can't fault him for being angry that I could have been responsible for either myself, or someone else being seriously injured."

The reporter sighed; inclined her head in agreement and smiled.

"Do you have a girlfriend Superman?"

He shook his head steadily "No."

"Are you interested in finding yourself a girlfriend?" A pretty redhead reporter called out, fluttering her lashes coyly.

"Right now I am only interested in helping where I can, and seeing your beautiful planet." He replied tranquilly.

"So what do you think of Seattle?" A male reporter asked curiously.

Smiling widely now that the news hounds were interested in his opinion of their fair city, Clark chatted happily about the wonders of Seattle.

***

_Back at Lois' house: Sitting up in bed watching the news conference._

"Well you were listening to them whispering to each other, so what'd you think?" Lois asked snuggling against his side.

He hugged her closer, his hand patted her hip familiarly, and titling his head down, he grinned "I think we did ok, there are one or two who are still sceptical, but in the main I think we pulled it off."

"I think so too."

He chuckled lightly at the pride in her voice, pointed the control at the TV and clicked it off "Mom particularly liked the meaning of 'girlfriend' and 'boyfriend' according to the Kryptonian dictionary."

Lois giggled and pressed her face into his neck "I think a number of people did, I heard two of the women reporters talking when I was in the ladies; they said that the meaning was fitting, since their boyfriends did quite often piss them off."

"Yeah, well I heard more than one man saying their girlfriends were a pain in the ass." He retorted with a soft chuckle before pressing his lips against hers "By the way, while you were talking to your friends on the phone, Chloe called to say that Perry appreciated Superman mentioning Ms Lane's article in the Daily Planet. Apparently the switch board was inundated with calls from all over America, the Planet's sister papers in London and Oslo have likewise been bombarded, all with requests to reprint your article. So both yours and the follow up Chloe and I wrote are being reprinted, sales are sure to go through the roof; and Perry's happy as a pig in mud."

Lois half smiled, half frowned "I didn't think Chloe usually worked on weekends."

"She doesn't; he called her at home to express his appreciation to her cousin, for not only writing the first article on Superman for the Planet, but for now being in the centre of a brouhaha with him and helping to sell papers once again." He picked her up, and brought her back down straddling his lap "He wants to know what it's going to take to get you on staff permanently."

Lois chuckled and shook her head "He couldn't afford me full time."

Clark reached out and tucked her hair behind her ear "The guys all think we did pretty good too; Bart said to tell you that when you get sick of me, to give him a call and he'll come running."

"I'll keep him in mind." She nodded seriously; playing her fingers over the nape of his neck.

"Like Hell! I reminded him that being Superman, I can easily chase him around the world, kicking his ass every step of the way if he tries anything."

The metal picture of Clark chasing after Bart, booting him up the ass, Bart picking himself up of the ground, and running away again only for Clark to catch up and boot him again was too much. Lois began to howl, he joined in and the two of them fell on the bed, rolling with laughter.

When their laughter calmed, he pressed a firm kiss on her lips "You're my pain in the ass." His smile grew when she slid on top of him, and wiggled around until comfortable.

Lois folded her arms across his chest and grinned "So, I'm a pain in your ass huh?"

"Yep; and that's just the way I like you." He retorted, smoothing aside the strap of her silk nightdress to press his lips against her shoulder.

"You're just lucky that I find that charming." She replied haughtily.

"The media's still going to refer to you as Superman's girlfriend Lo. Unfortunately any time there's a link between us, they're going to use it to make good copy and sell papers." He reminded her soberly.

"Why should there be any links between us?"

"Because when you're in trouble, I'm going to be there."

She shook her head and gave him a half smile "Clark I'm hardly ever in trouble, and I've been looking after myself for a long time now, so you don't have to come flying to the rescue just because you think I need help."

"Yes I do." He countered emphatically rolling her under him "I don't care how long you were looking out for yourself, I'm here now."

She sighed and shook her head at the uncompromising tone in his voice "Well I don't think it'll be as bad as it was before the press conference. When we got home today there were only two messages on my machine, as opposed to the twenty million I had yesterday. The ones who didn't believe us will eventually give up too. They can speculate all they like, but unless they have proof, they won't be able to confirm anything."

He lifted up on one forearm, stroked his thumb along her bottom lip and nodded "Well I can move faster than the eye can see, so when I arrive here on Friday nights I'll be careful that no one sees me, not even if they're looking closely."

She lifted her hand and began to pat down the tufts of his hair sticking up "How about I just leave the back door open, so that you can swoosh right in?"

He frowned and shook his head "I don't want you leaving your door unlocked or open Lois, what if I can't come straight after work because I'm detained on a Superman call?"

"I've got Fred." She reminded him pointedly.

"I don't care." He replied inflexibly.

"Then how about I leave the window to the lounge room open?"

"No, if you had an upper floor I'd agree but you don't; so no." He thought for a moment then sighed "I'll fly here, call you while I'm floating around Seattle somewhere, you open the back door and I'll fly quickly inside."

"Ok."

"Ok."

Leaning down he whispered in her ear "Now how about I show you exactly why staying away from Seattle will never be an option."

She laughed huskily in reply "Why don't you do that, after all I think I need a reminder of why I don't mind being called your girlfriend."

"Mine or Superman's?" He clarified, smiling at her tenderly.

"Both...either." She replied, borrowing his words from the previous night.

He rolled onto his back taking her with him, pushed her up gently and slipped her nightdress up and off before tossing it aside carelessly. His eyes roved over her form in appreciation, missing no detail before lifting to meet hers.

The flush of desire on his face as he looked at her body, the fire burning in his eyes when they met, caused her tummy to flutter.

He knew the desire he felt, the thirst that lived inside for her and her alone was showing in his eyes and on his face, but he couldn't hide it and didn't want to. He wanted Lois to understand, to start accepting that it wasn't just sexual infatuation that kept him coming back, or her allowing him to. Hopefully soon, she would begin to believe again in what she didn't want to, and then trust him with it.

Smiling into her eyes, his hand lifted to smooth over her hip, and around to her back, before he flipped her underneath him again, enjoying the light gurgle she let out in surprise. Kneeling up, he pushed his briefs down, floated up to kick them off, and came back down to kneel on the bed once again. Her eyes likewise travelled over him, her lips lifted at the corners, her tongue swiped over her bottom lip before her eyes lifted to meet his. In them he saw the same craving that lived inside him.

He slid down until his body covered hers, lifted up slightly on one elbow and glided his free hand down her side, past her waist, over her hip to her leg, and tugged gently until her thigh was embracing the side of his hip. His fingers clenched slightly before his hand smoothed up her side once again; giving him the pleasure of feeling sleek soft skin "I love the way you feel; your skin against mine; having you wrapped around me."

"Not too old?" She teased, running her tongue along the underside of his jaw.

"Oh hell no; you're all woman Lo, there's nothing of the girl about you; and I find that more seductive than you can imagine." He bent down to press his lips to the tip of her nose and grinned "If that guy could only see you now, he'd know just how stacked you are?"

She flung out her arms and giggled "Ohhhh Superman, how sweet of you to say that; take me baby."

"With pleasure Bambi." She squealed in laughter, and chuckling, he covered her laughing lips with his.

***

When Fred nudged them awake several hours later with a few soft woofs; Clark rubbed his hand over her abdomen and whispered "I'll take care of it babe, you go back to sleep." Lois snuggled into the pillow, murmured "hmm" drowsily and did as suggested. He moved her carefully aside, quietly got out of bed, pulled on his robe and walked to the back door to let the dog outside. While waiting for Fred to finish, he stood at the edge of the gazebo, looked up at the stars and smiled.

Lois was his girlfriend; less than 3 months ago she'd told him that the last thing she wanted was a relationship, and now she didn't mind that he not only considered her his girlfriend, but that he called her that as well. She was also comfortable enough with him, that she didn't wake up when he called her babe.

He couldn't believe how lucky, how blessed he was. If he hadn't been dining in that restaurant the night Lois and her friends had been there, it could have been years before he found her again. He didn't doubt that he would have found her one day, but how much longer it would have taken was anyone's guess.

Even if he'd found her a couple of years ago the timing wouldn't have been right. Lois had only been divorced for two years, so would have been far too bruised and raw to give him a chance then. He'd lost years with her, years that couldn't be reclaimed, but at least he'd found her now, at just the right time. She'd still been wary when they met, was less so with each passing day, but even a year ago it might have been too soon for her.

They'd both changed a lot from who they had been. Years ago they'd taken different paths in life, travelled different roads, but someone or something had decided that it was past time for them to get it right. This time, it was their time, and their paths had converged bringing them back together.

He didn't know if destiny was a someone or a something, he was just grateful that she, he or it had been looking out for him, and had given him a second chance with Lois. Some people only got one chance in life, and if they blew it, then it was too bad.

His first chance had been when he was a teenager, too full of hormones to be able to distinguish the difference between real love and puppy love; and like any amateur, he'd bypassed the real thing, and gone straight for the counterfeit. Thank god he was now older and wiser. He now understood just how precious and exceptional real love was, and how hard it was to find. He would cherish it and Lois all the more, knowing how rare the opportunity he'd been granted had been.

He loved Lois, and he liked her. He enjoyed spending time with her, in bed, out of it, their robust arguments when sharing their views on inconsequential things, playing with Fred; no matter what they did he enjoyed it, and he knew that she did too. Hopefully soon she would feel all the deeper emotions that he did; he believed that she was starting to, so for now, what he had was enough.

When Fred nuzzled against his leg, he looked down at the mutt and gestured with his head to the house "C'mon boy, let's go back to bed."

He ushered the dog inside, closed the door, and turned back to see the mutt trotting off to his doggy bed. Stepping quietly into the bedroom, he tugged off his robe, slipped into bed beside Lois and gathered her in his arms once again. She wiggled closer, pulled his arm tighter around her body; and after pressing a kiss against her hair, he whispered softly "I love you Lois" and within minutes followed her back into slumber.


	16. Chapter 16

Thanks for the feedback guys, I'm glad to know that people are enjoying the story, also thanks for the tip on the anonymous reviews thing. I didn't have a reason for not allowing them; when I joined FFNet, anonymous reviews was already enabled and I just didn't disable it, as I don't tend to change default settings. Anyway, I have disabled it now, so let's just hope no one anonymously abuses me, lol.

BTW: I didn't have Lois call Clark S'ville because honestly; I didn't even think of it. I began writing this story in conjunction with another where he was called S'ville for a particular reason, so maybe that was in the back of my mind, and why it wasn't used in SC. I might see if I can work it in somewhere, but it's not a name that I tend to use a lot when I write them as adults so it won't be a permanent name that she uses in this story, sorry.

Anyway, here are the next two chapters which I hope you all enjoy.

Linda

**

**Chapter 16**

_Almost 4 weeks later_

Clark grinned and shook his head "Will you stop."

"And here's another one, if any of the male criminals are pissed at you for catching them and yell 'up yours Superman', you can choke them off by yelling back, 'if one man says that to another on Krypton, it means; you're hot, and I'm gay, my place or yours'." Chloe finished with a howl of laughter.

He valiantly swallowed the mouthful of beer he'd just taken, and smacked her lightly on the arm "Do you lie in bed at night thinking these up?"

She nodded rapidly "Yep, I figure that being your friend it's my responsibility to help you make up sayings for the Kryptonian dictionary."

He snorted rudely in reply "Well please stop helping."

"I also think it's not fair if I can't get in on the fun now, when I had to put up with you bitching about being an alien years ago." She pouted sulkily.

He snickered at the almost whining tone in her voice "Ok Chlo, you can keep on making up sayings for the Kryptonian dictionary."

She beamed a smile "Thank you; by the way I love how you're still blaming your Kryptonian roots for stuff. Years ago it was for making you feel different, now it comes in handy when you need to get your big fat foot out of your mouth." She cocked her head "It was Lois' idea right?"

He nodded "Yep, she said it was perfect to blame my screw-ups on."

Chloe shook her head sadly "Poor Jor-el, all he wanted was his son to help the world, and now that you do, your dear old dad still gets a boot up the bum." She waited a beat then finished tongue in cheek "Notice that I didn't use the word ass; it's because I know you're not comfortable using the slang word for bottom."

He guffawed in return and reached for his third slice of pizza.

"If those reporters only knew some of the words I've heard you use on more than one occasion...." She trailed off with a light chortle and reached for another slice of pizza "So when does Lois get back?"

"Not for another week." He grimaced, took another bite of pizza, chewed, swallowed and huffed "I still don't see why I couldn't have visited her on the weekends."

"Because if you had, and something happened and Superman magically appeared due to an emergency, then all the bull the two of you spread at that conference would have been pointless." She patted him on the arm consolingly "You've been busy with work and Superman, so you haven't had a lot of free time anyway."

"I know but she's been gone for three weeks now and...." Hearing the distant wail of sirens, he dropped the pizza carelessly into the box, quickly wiped his hand, and spun into the suit "I've gotta be on my way again; see ya Chlo." Flying out the window, he took off in the direction he was needed, and from there it was one thing after another.

Returning to his apartment several hours later, he had a quick shower before wearily crawling into bed; his cold lonely bed. He sighed and looked up at the ceiling. He'd only spoken to Lois on the phone for the past three weeks, he hadn't seen her, or visited her and he missed her like hell.

He'd wanted to be a normal when he was a teenager, gees what a dickhead. A normal guy couldn't just fly to wherever his lady love was to spend the weekend with her; a normal person had to use the phone to reach out and touch someone, and what a crock that was. A phone call was cold comfort in exchange for being with his girlfriend in the flesh. A phone call didn't make up for not hearing her breathing beside him while she slept, holding her close, seeing her eyes light up with laughter, warm with passion, darken with desire and a phone call was a pitiful replacement to feeling her wrapped around him while they made love.

Maybe this was payback for all the years he'd dreamed of being an average Joe? Now that he was forced to play the role of the normal boyfriend whose girlfriend was away, and he had to be content with hearing her voice on the phone, he could see that being average wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

Sighing again he looked out the window, he wasn't normal and he was damn grateful for it; on the other hand, being super and not being able to use it to his benefit chafed at him. He could be with Lois within minutes, but because he'd put his big fat super foot in his mouth, he now had to act circumspect, and be content with phone calls until she came home.

Chewing his lip thoughtfully, he wondered if it would be unethical to create a little problem; nothing much, just something little that would require Superman's aid in Dallas. Yeah right, and all that would get him would be a guilty conscience, a pissed off girlfriend, and no nookie for the foreseeable future.

Rolling over he closed his eyes and sighed for the third time. If Lois called to say that she was delayed yet again, the world was going to start calling him Super-sissy, because he was going to cry like a little girl.

***

_Next Day_

While the lift carried him up to the newsroom floor, Clark relaxed back against the wall. He hoped the spate of emergencies he'd been dealing with the last few weeks soon slowed down to a crawl. Maybe it was the heat; the searing temperatures in Metropolis seemed to have tried everyone's patience. For the past two weeks the temperature gauge had climbed steadily, and the bureau was predicting more to come. During the day, the sun sat like a great orange ball in the sky with not a cloud in sight to even hint at the promise of rain, and cooler temperatures in sight; while the nights were stuffy and oppressive with no light breeze to offer even slight relief.

Tempers were getting shorter; people were angry and mean, rude and impatient with every little thing. The annoyance meter seemed to be spiking. He wouldn't be at all surprised if some sweet little grandmother didn't run over the neighbour's kitty in aggravation unless there was a break in the weather soon.

Admittedly while Lois was away he'd been keeping extra busy in his non working hours attending to any and every little call for help. However, this morning he'd been helping the emergency personnel when the situation was beyond their control, but now it was almost two o'clock, and this was his first appearance in the office for the day. If he didn't offer something to Perry; not even a story that he was looking into, he was going to get his ass kicked by his boss.

The lift dinged, the doors slid open and stepping into the newsroom, Clark was surprised to see industrial sized fans strategically placed around the bullpen.

After taking a quick scan around, he found Chloe in the kitchen wiping damp paper towels over her face.

"What's with the fans in the bullpen Chlo?"

She rolled her eyes in his direction and sighed heavily "The air conditioning's conked out; maintenance is trying to fix it but..."

"But it's not going to happen in the next five minutes." He commiserated, feeling grateful that his body temperature wasn't affected by the weather.

"They said about two hours; maximum. That was three hours ago." Throwing away the old and retrieving some fresh paper towels, she wet them and began to swipe over the back of her neck and down her throat "I hope you've got a story to write about or the Chief's gonna be mad; he's really cranky at the moment."

He shrugged half-heartedly, checked around and after ensuring that no one else was in the vicinity, told her quietly "I've been on a Superman call all day, so that's all I've got."

"Use it Clark; you have been working and you shouldn't be penalised from writing about Superman just because you're him. When you need a Superman story to keep your by-line healthy then use one. After all it's not your fault that sometimes you just can't do your regular job, because your super one is keeping you busy." She advised him softly.

"Lois pretty much told me the same thing when I explained to her about the first reporter on scene getting the story. She said in that case I'll always be the first on scene because no one can be there faster than Superman. However, by the same coin, I'll always be last and will always miss out, since I can't be there as Clark." He smiled in amusement "She said that I shouldn't give away every Superman story or that will not only look suspicious, but I'll also be short changing myself."

"Exactly, so take both our advice and write up your story because you're doing nothing wrong." She finished quietly and after throwing away the towel, walked with him back to the bull pen.

"Kent!"

Turning at the sound of Perry's voice, he saw his editor giving him the fish eye and gesturing with his head into his office. After stepping inside he closed the door, and walked out ten minutes later feeling pleased. He'd told Perry about the exclusive he'd obtained, causing the editor to almost beam in satisfaction, before he'd been shooed out the door to get the story written.

90 minutes later he was in the process of proof reading his story for errors and omissions when the phone rang. He picked it up, answering absently as his eyes continued to run over the screen, when Lois' voice broke through his concentration "C'mon Fred, I said that I was sorry..."

"Lo." Clark cut in amused.

"Hi."

"Hi yourself; I heard you talking to Fred, does that mean you're home?" He asked hopefully.

"Yeah, and he's ticked off with me for being away..." He heard the sigh, he was almost sure he could also hear her eyes rolling as well, before she decided to give him her attention; which lasted for only a moment "I've only been back for two hours, and I picked him up as soon as I dumped my stuff at home." As her voice was still loud though slightly turned away, at first he wasn't sure if she was actually speaking to him, then realised that she wasn't "I didn't even bother to unpack, I didn't bother having a cup of coffee or relaxing first, but does he appreciate it; NO! That's right just ignore me, I only took you to the most exclusive kennel there is in this city...." She called out before turning to speak into the receiver once again "He's still not paying any attention to me."

Clark let out a small chuckle at the sullen tone in her voice "Babe, you know that he hates it when you leave him behind."

She turned away and yelled once again. "And if I didn't go away to make the money to keep his royal highness is in the manner he's become accustomed to, where would he be?"

Clark's smile widened; god he'd missed her "So did you just call to let me know you're home?"

"Yep, it's Friday night so unless you made plans because I wasn't expected back, get your naked self over to my house after work."

"Since I don't have any plans, my naked self can be there soon." He replied quietly enough that no one would overhear.

"After work is fine, I haven't even had a shower yet." She sighed heavily "I was so sure that once I explained why I had to go away, Fred would understand."

"I'm guessing he didn't."

She snorted lightly "Not so you'd notice, he actually had the gall to turn and look back at the kennel longingly when I was leading him out to the car. Then he yawned at me when I was explaining on the way home, and now he's sitting by the door with his back to me looking outside." She paused and whispered quietly "He just looked over his shoulder and sniffed, I'm not sure if he knows I'm talking about him, or is annoyed that I'm not begging forgiveness yet. I'll smile and see what happens. Hey Freddy..." A moment later "...rotten bugger just turned his back on me again."

Clark bit his lip "He's annoyed that you left him behind, and is upset that you're not lavishing him with attention now that you're back."

"I lavished him at the kennel; I hugged him and I kissed him, and do you know what he did? He actually turned and gave his paw to one of the assistants." She howled indignantly "We've been home for over 30 minutes, and I've been sucking up the whole time."

"And now you've taken a break to call me." He put in pleased.

"Yeah, I tried before I left Dallas but you weren't answering so I figured that you must have been busy."

"I turned my phone off while I was out chasing up a Superman story."

"I had a feeling it was something like that, which is why I didn't call again until now." She sighed softly "I know that Fred loves to sulk for a while before forgiving me, I was just hoping that he'd let me off the hook this time." She let out a small scoffing laugh "Obviously I was an idiot. Anyway I'm gonna be pretty busy for a while so take your time, and if I'm drunk by the time you get here, I give you permission to take advantage of me."

He smirked "Do you know how many teenage boys would love to get that invitation?"

"Do you know how many teenage boys I gave that invitation too?" She countered back smartly.

He snorted out a laugh and leant back in his chair "Oh charming; are you telling me my girlfriend was a lush who was into free love in high school?"

"Hey! I might have been cheap but I was never free." She pointed out snottily.

"Sorry." He promptly apologised "So how many boys did you give that invitation to exactly?"

"Let me think; one, two, three...." He heard her mutter and mumble "I think it was about 30."

"Thirty, so I'm number 31?"

"Don't be ridiculous; you're number...." She giggled and pretended to count once again "...hmm, since I didn't give you that invitation when I was in high school, and it's now been many years since I left, I have no idea."

"Then I'm one of the privileged few." He asked politely.

"Very privileged; anyway I just rang to let you know that I'm home, and now I 'm gonna have a shower, fortify myself with wine then suck up to Fred once again."

After another minute or two of conversation, he hung up, swiftly finished editing his story and rapidly emailed it to Perry. While his computer was powering down, he chatted with Chloe, and was in the process of wishing her a nice weekend when his boss called him into his office to talk about his article.

The conversation was short; Perry was pleased with his work, his growth as a reporter, and wished him a good weekend. Then Clark was clocked off for the day and headed to Seattle.

He found Fred just as Lois had described him; sitting by the back door, looking out the glass to the gazebo. He tried the handle, discovered the door was open, and after a giving the dog a quick scratch hello, closed and secured the door before making his way straight to the master bedroom. Once there his clothes were speedily shed, then he was walking to the en-suite and stepping inside the shower to give his girlfriend a very welcome home greeting.

***

Lois lifted her face to the stream, smoothed her hair back then turned and let the water gush over the back of her neck. She blew out a soft sigh then almost gasped at the feeling of strong masculine lips pressing against hers.

Her eyes opened to find familiar blue smiling back at her "How did you get in?"

"Your back door was closed but not locked; we'll have to talk about that later." Clark smiled, sliding his arms around her waist to press her body up against his.

Her hands slipped up and down his arms to sit on his shoulders, her lips tilted "Now why should we do that, when my plan worked beautifully?"

"Are you telling me, that you purposely enticed me by saying that you going to have a shower?" He reproved, rubbing his hands up and down her back.

She grinned with cat like in satisfaction "I wanted to see how fast you could get over here; by my calculations it was about 10 minutes."

"7 minutes." He smiled, smoothing her hair back before linking his hands at the base of her spine once again "....and it wouldn't have been that long, but Perry wanted to talk to me before I left."

"No excuses accepted." Her brow lifted curiously "You know, I only mentioned the shower; it really doesn't take much to entice you huh?"

"It doesn't take **you** any effort to entice me." He corrected, before bending down to take her lips with his.

Mouths opened, the kiss intensified, tongues duelled and parried, swept into his mouth then back into hers. Her arms locked around his shoulders, her hands tangled in his hair, while his stroked down her spine, feeling all the familiar curves and lines of her body before settling to sit either side of her waist. He lifted her up, her legs clamped fast around his hips, his arms fast around her waist, and he groaned deep in his throat at the exquisite feeling of her lush breasts plastered against his chest.

Their lips broke apart; his head titled back to allow the spray of the shower to beat down on his face, her mouth trailed down the column of his neck then made the return journey back to his chin. Stepping forward, he pressed her up against the tiles, and his mouth locked onto hers for another searing kiss. One hand smoothed down her back, to her bottom, rubbed over the globes gently before his fingers trailed down and under to the soft flesh of her sex. Lois gasped, pulled her mouth free, his head turned and captured her lips with his once again. His tongue slid over and around hers, as his fingers continued to dance and flirt with the flesh between her thighs. As his fingers became slicker, he murmured softly into her mouth before freeing her lips and opening his eyes to find hers were still closed, her lips parted gently.

His hand slid up to her bottom to sit in the small of her back, his head bent to press his lips against her shoulder when a droplet of water fell from the tip of her hair onto her collar bone. Lifting his chest from hers slightly, he watched as the bead snaked down her skin and over her breast to hang enticingly from the tip. Foregoing her shoulder, he bent his head and licked the droplet away before his tongue dragged over and around the nipple, causing his lips to lift in satisfaction when it puckered and hardened even further.

He continued to toy with the bud, running his lips back and forth over it, sipping at it lightly, scraping his teeth over it gently, before enclosing the tip and surrounding flesh in the warm cavern of his mouth to suck softly, then harder at Lois' encouraging murmur.

Moving his mouth to the other breast, he subjected it to the same consideration before lifting his head and opening his eyes to lock onto Lois' face once again. Seeing her bottom lip clamped between her teeth, the flush on her cheeks, her face sharp with desire; his own body's urging could be denied no longer. His hands moved to her waist, flexed once to ensure his hold was secure, and pushing forward slowly, he hummed aloud at the delicious feeling of her soft wet flesh parting to allow him entrance, until his penis was encased entirely within her warm wet channel.

He dropped his forehead gently against hers "God Lo, I've missed you."

"I can tell.' She murmured; rubbing her breasts against his chest, and wiggling slightly. When he groaned once again; lashes spiky from the water fluttered up, smiling eyes locked with his for a moment, before closing in contentment once again.

Seeing the self satisfied smirk on her face, he decided that turn about was fair play "Keep holding onto me ok, babe?" She nodded, clamped her arms and legs tighter around him, his hands slid up until his palms were cupping her shoulder blades, and taking one step back, he separated his chest from hers, and leant back slightly to allow the spray of water to hit where they were joined. Lois gasped, bit at his chin and opened her eyes; now dark with desire to clamp onto his.

"Give a girl some warning." She pantingly chided.

"Payback." He grinned unrepentant, and fastened his arms tight around her waist to bring her flush against him once more. She tightened her inner muscles around his shaft in luscious retaliation "Vixen." She smiled wickedly, and flexed her inner muscles once again.

Ensuring his hold and footing was secure, he began to move; strong, steady strokes that changed to deeper harder thrusts, as his mouth once again locked onto hers. Lips caressed, tongues tangled and twined in concerto with their bodies. Pulling her mouth free, she panted harshly against the side of his neck, his lips peppered kisses onto her shoulders as their loins continued to advance and retreat.

Lois mewled softly, bit into the muscle of his shoulder, and feeling the gathering tightness in his groin, Clark began to plunge in and out harder, faster; determined that he wouldn't finish before she'd found release. Locking one arm tighter around her waist, he slipped his free hand between their bodies to stroke over the button hard nubbin at the top of her sex; once, twice, and with a soft keening wail, her short nails scored down his back, her head dropped to lie heavily on his shoulder, while her body continued to quake gently. Clamping both arms tight around her waist, he began to plunge and thrust, piercing his shaft firmly in and out of her core until the pressure finally snapped, and grunting aloud at the feeling of tightness and release, his deep guttural cries echoed around the shower.

When her legs began to slide off his hips, he quickly moved his hands to the underneath of her thighs, keeping her locked against him "Not yet babe." He panted harshly against her throat "It's been a long three weeks, I wanna feel you wrapped around me a little longer."

They stayed locked together, panting in unison, their faces buried in the side of each other's necks. Small shudders continued to quiver through them, before turning to lighter trembles and finally stillness.

His body separated from hers, his hands released her thighs, slid up her bottom to her back, her legs slipped off his hips, and her hands slid down his arms. Clark pressed his lips against her forehead then captured her mouth with his once again. Moist lips moved lazily against each other, tongues danced languidly; lips lifted, came back together, and with a last soft kiss their mouths parted and eyes opened.

"I needed that."

"Me too." She agreed quietly, before letting out a soft giggle "I thought showering together was supposed to save water?"

He grinned, then chuckled, sliding his hands up and down her arms "Whoever said that, obviously didn't have a woman like you in the shower with them."

"A woman like me?" She repeated with lifted brow.

"Yeah, one who's hot as hell, and way too much temptation for a man like me to resist?" He turned around, unhooked the shower puff, and held it out "Want me to do your back?'

"No, if you do my back we'll never get out, and I'm starting to resemble a prune." Stepping aside she waved him forward "Have your shower, and make it quick then beat it so that I can get clean."

"Finished with me, have you?" She grinned and nodded. He grinned in return, gave her the puff, showered and was finished a minute later "Done."

She stuck out her tongue "Show off."

He stepped out, but ducked his head back in a moment later "Can I watch?" At her lifted brow "I won't touch." At her second lifted brow "Yeah that was a lie." At her chuckle, he swept his eyes over her once, then again before nodding "A definite lie, ok I'll leave and let you shower in peace." Using super-speed, he dried off, dressed and was enjoying a nice glass of wine when she joined him 30 minutes later.

Picking up her wine from the table where he'd placed it, she took a seat beside him on the couch, put her feet up on the coffee table and relaxed.

He looked over, saw the dog was still pointedly looking out the window and turned to Lois with a smirk "I see what you mean about Fred ignoring you."

She looked at the animal in question and smiled ruefully "He's a champion sulker."

"I'm on his side." Clark replied and when her head titled enquiringly, he nodded firmly "The next time you go away to gather research for a book, I'm either going to join you, or I'm going to pick you up and bring you home for the weekend."

She grinned good natured "You can't join me, after the last debacle, the last thing we need is for Superman to suddenly turn up wherever I am. Besides I wasn't gone that long."

"You were gone for three weeks Lo, and only came back tonight because you finished quicker than expected." He sipped his wine and continued "If you weren't here now, I'd be spending this weekend the same way I have the last two." At her curiosity he gestured with his glass "Having dinner, chatting and watching girly movies with Chloe, doing Superman duties or playing poker with the guys, and listening while they try to out-do each other with outlandish lies about all the women they're beating off with a stick."

"The guys tell lies about women who are crazy for them?" She laughed incredulous.

"Of course." He replied matter of fact.

"Gees you lot are pathetic."

He snorted rudely "Right, like women don't talk about men."

She shrugged unabashed then asked curiously "Well I'm sure you didn't just listen, so spill it; what'd you say about me?"

He wiggled his brows "I told them that you can't get enough of me; that you beg me to come and see you every night; that you cry and wail when I leave on Monday mornings..."

She let out a shout of laughter "And they believe that crap?"

"Of course." He nodded emphatically "We're men; it's an unwritten rule that we support our buddies when they talk shit, and we love nothing more than to brag to each other about the ladies." She took a sip of wine and giggled into her glass, then almost spit out the mouthful at his next words "Oh by the way, I've also told them that you're double jointed, an absolute tiger in bed, and have worn me out on more than one occasion." He leant down, pressed his lips to her shoulder and whispered "The last two weren't a lie."

She chortled, and wiggled into the couch cushions to settle more comfortably.

"So what have you told your friends about me?" At her quirked brow, he nudged her arm "C'mon, I know that women love to talk, so let's see how you compare."

Lois shrugged casually "Well I've told them that you can do the most _**amazing**_ things with your tongue..." She broke off at the appalled look on his face, and bit her lip to stop the laughter from spilling out.

"Please, please tell me you're kidding." He all but pleaded.

"Were you kidding about the stuff you told the guys about me?" She asked politely.

He nodded rapidly, she sighed hugely in disappointment "Well I'm sorry Clark, but as you pointed out we women love to talk." At the scared look in his eyes, her smile widened "Oh by the way I've also told them...."

"Stop I don't wanna know." He gulped some wine and relaxed when she shook her head "I'm teasing."

"You don't think I can do the most amazing things with my tongue?" He asked downcast.

She tapped her chin in contemplation before shaking her head sadly "I wish that I could say yes, but unfortunately I have a terrible memory....." She leant up and likewise whispered "...so I guess you'll just have to show me again later."

He grinned in anticipation, before hooking an arm around her waist to nestle her against his side. Putting down his glass, he tilted her chin up and looked into her eyes, all humour gone "I missed you like hell Lo."

"Well that was one heck of a homecoming you just gave me." Lois laughed, but at the steady look in his eyes, she sobered "I missed you too." She told him truthfully, pressing her lips to his chin "How about we go to bed early tonight, and I'll show you how much."

"I'm not going to say no, but it wasn't just the sex that I missed Lois it was you." His fingers stroked her cheek gently "The next time you go away for longer than a few days, I wanna come and spend the weekends wherever you are, or bring you home." When her mouth opened, he pressed a finger against her lips "I don't want us to not see each other for weeks at a time when you have to go away for work."

She sighed and shook her head "Clark we can't take the chance. Sometimes my work takes me away; this time it was Dallas, next time it could be somewhere else. I don't go away for weeks at a time very often but...."

"How often?" He cut in curiously.

She shrugged "Once or twice a year. Usually when I go away for research it's only for a couple of days here or there, a week at most; but if you're spotted where I am..."

"Superman won't be spotted." He returned quietly.

Her brows quirked "Really, so if you join me and something happens like a car crash, something falling on someone, someone falling off something etc, you'll be able to just ignore it?" She asked pointedly.

He swore crisply under his breath "I go all over the world Lo..."

"Yeah you do, but if you just happen to always turn up where I am, people are going to get suspicious. You know the media's keeping tabs on Superman and me, not overly but closely enough they will notice something like that, so let's not give them any rope to hang us with."

He rubbed his hand over her hip "I'll think of something, but I'm not going to wait weeks to see you again." He took the glass out of her hand, put it on the side-table beside his then turned back to capture her mouth with his. His hand lifted to sit on her jaw, silently encouraging her mouth to open, and when it did his tongue slipped inside. The kiss hardened, then gentled, lips clung then parted; and when they were both panting his mouth parted from hers reluctantly "That guff about the quantity of time couples spend together being just as important as the quality is all bullshit Lo. If a couple doesn't spend time together, they grow apart, they don't grow closer; and I don't want that to happen to us."

She blew out a soft breath and nodded minutely.

"So we'll think of something." She smiled at his persistence and nodded once again "Thank you." His lips lifted at the corners and pressed gently against hers once more "You might not get any sleep tonight, I have three weeks to make up for."

Her smile widened before she pushed herself up to stretch "Well before we do anything else, I'd better go and solicit Fred's forgiveness. Hopefully he's had long enough to brood, and is ready to love me again." He watched as Lois got down on her knees, crooned softly to the mutt, stroked her hand over his fur, and laughed quietly when the dog just sniffed and turned his head further away. "C'mon Freddy, you know that I missed you. I bought you those fantastically expensive yummy baked liver treats that you love." Fred's ears perked up, but he continued to keep his face turned away.

When Lois got to her feet and ran out of the room, Clark noted the dog looked over his shoulder longingly at her retreating form, but at the sound of her feet rushing back, the mutt quickly turned to look outside again. Kneeling down beside Fred, Lois patted his head and all but sang "Look at what else I brought you Freddy, I knew that you'd love it..." When the dog looked at her, she nodded rapidly "Uh huh, uh huh, see it's a toy that'll keep you entertained all day." She held up a spring like rubber rope and smiled big "I found it on a website that's exclusively for dogs and ordered it special just for you. I just attach one end to a tree or something, and you can go crazy. You can pull and tug on it, and it won't break because it's made to spring back. They said it's like a tug of war that you can play with all day; and unlike me it won't get tired."

Fred licked her cheek, Lois smiled and pecked his nose "And tonight we're having barbeque for dinner and guess who's getting all the bones....." At his disappointed pout, she quickly rushed on "....and a big juicy steak all for himself."

Clark let out a shout of laughter, but at the heated look she threw in his direction, he quickly picked up his drink and buried his nose in the glass.

"I thought you didn't make a habit of spoiling him." He asked politely when Lois stood up happily.

"Do you want me to kiss you with dog lips?" She asked in the same manner; and at his quick headshake "Then shut up. I'm going to wash my face and will be back in a minute." He figured the dog had forgiven his mistress, when Fred got up and trotted after her.

She returned with the mutt hard on her heels, and after retaking her seat, Fred planted his rump on the ground and his head in her lap. She looked at Clark out of the corner of her eye and sniffed "A little spoiling never hurt anyone."

"So just who's steak is he getting; mine or yours?" He asked affably.

"His own, I called my housekeeper before I left Dallas, and told her I was on way home." She replied shamefaced.

Clark grinned "And....?"

"And Eva said that she'd go shopping to ensure the fridge and cupboards were stocked before she left for the day; but when she offered to cook, I told her not to bother because we'd just have a barbeque, and that's when she laughed." Lois huffed, while her fingertips ran back and forth over the dog's head absently "She said that she'd find a huge steak for Fred, because I'd need something to bribe him with when I pleaded with him tonight."

Seeing the bliss on the animals face at her ministrations caused Clark's smile to grow "Eva knows that Fred has you wrapped around his paw." When she scowled at his words, he continued amused "Lo everyone knows that you dote on Fred, and that he adores you in return; we all think it's....cute."

"We all; who's we all?"

"Your housekeeper, your friends; basically anyone that's spent more than 10 minutes with both of you." He replied promptly before looking down pointedly at her hand.

She followed his eyes, blushed and looked up with a chagrined half smile "I've turned into a big sap."

"Yeah, you have." He glanced at the dog, looked back at Lois and smiled "Well, you've already recompensed me for being away, so if a toy and a steak makes him happy..." He trailed off, leaning over to give the mutt a pat.

"It's my begging that makes him happy, the other stuff's just gravy; right Freddy?"

He woofed at the sound of his name, and put his paw on her knee.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

While Lois put the salad together, Clark fired up the grill, and soon the smell of barbeque wafted gently in the air. Sticking her head out the door she called "Do you want a beer, wine or soft drink?"

"Beer please."

Switching the stereo on to a light music station, she poured herself a glass of wine, grabbed a can of beer, and stepped outside. After handing over the desired beverage, she moved between the kitchen and the gazebo, carting things back and forth until the table was set with all that was needed for their dinner. Returning to the kitchen once more, she retrieved her wine, before stepping outside to take a seat at the table. She sipped her wine and smiled at the picture the two males presented. Clark stood tall manning the grill, with Fred at his side resting his bulk against her guy's leg. If he'd been any other man, the animal's weight would have knocked him on his ass, as it was Clark didn't seem to even notice it.

These were the two men in her life; a dog the size of a small mountain, and a man who could lift up said mountain without any effort whatsoever.

"You seem to have acquired a friend."

Clark looked down, grinned at Fred then turned to her "Yeah we're pals; we understand each other."

"Oh..." her brow lifted in polite enquiry "...in what way?"

"In a way that being a woman you wouldn't understand, right boy?" Fred woofed, but kept his eyes on the steaks, and licked his lips.

Clark picked up his beer and sipped "By the way, mom suggested that when it's your turn to spend the weekend in Smallville, that you should bring Fred as well."

Lois looked at her dog and smiled "He'll enjoy that, and he won't be pissed at me for leaving him behind."

Nodding in agreement, he continued to cook the steaks and once they were done, carried them to the table. After blowing on one to cool it down, he cut it up, popped it into Fred's bowl and while the dog enjoyed his dinner they did also.

After dinner was finished everything was swiftly put where it belonged; in the dishwasher, fridge and cupboards or disposed of in the rubbish bin. After which Clark topped up their wine glasses, Lois switched the outside lights on, and the two returned to sit outside while enjoying the falling darkness and each other's company.

Between the fairy lights in the garden, the light summer breeze, the ambiance of the night, the soft dreamy music and being together after weeks apart; the night took on a bewitching quality of romance.

Clark looked at Lois from the corner of his eye and felt his heart roll over in his chest. He'd seen her dressed up to the max for a fancy night out, in sexy night dresses, in casual jeans and t-shirt, yet couldn't help but love the way she looked tonight. She'd joined him after her shower dressed in a way that seemed to combine all her different looks into one enchanting package.

She was wearing a very simple, yet flirtatious printed halter summer dress which showcased her upper body beautifully, while the full skirt which hit mid calf had swished around her legs as she'd pottered around the house. Her hair was in a practical ponytail high on her head, with the tip just dancing on the nape of her neck, she hadn't bothered with makeup, but had taken the time to spray on perfume.

He leant over, pressed his lips against the join of her shoulder and neck then looked up and tilted his head in query "What perfume are you wearing?"

"Paris."

"Is that the name?" At her nod, he sniffed lightly "It's beautiful."

"Thank you." She lifted her wrist, sniffed and turned to smile at him "I have to admit it's one of my favourites."

"Do you have many?"

"Uh huh; it depends on the mood I'm in, but yes I have a number of different ones that I'm partial too. Don't you, for after shave I mean?"

He nodded "Yeah, but my after shave doesn't turn me on."

"It's not meant to; it's meant to turn me on." She laughed lightly.

"Does it?"

"Yeah." She nodded in confirmation "Did you ever see that television commercial, where this woman had run out of deodorant so she borrowed her boyfriends?" He shook his head amused, Lois smiled and continued "Well she put his deodorant on, left the house and everywhere she went, women were giving her the come-on. At the end of the commercial, she goes home, puts the guy's deodorant down in front of him, he looks at it then turns and gives her a sheepish smile and shrug." Clark chuckled; she bobbed her head and smiled "That does happen. I've been around a few men and thought whatever they were wearing smelt incredible, so I've asked them what it is."

"You haven't asked me." He replied mock wounded.

"I didn't need to..." At his lifted brows, she gave a blasé shrug "I just snooped." She finished tapping his chin.

"You have absolutely no shame do you?" He asked with a light laugh.

"Not really, no." She responded promptly, without a hint of embarrassment.

He trailed one finger down her nose, before leaning forward to press his lips to the tip. He'd kept an ear out so knew they were alone, but just to be cautious did a quick sweep. Once assured there were no eyes or ears secretly trained on her house, he knew it was safe to talk about the topic he wanted to discuss "The time moved very slowly while you were gone."

Her lips lifted slightly "I've seen the news so I know that you've been busy...."

"Not so busy that I didn't miss you..." He cut in gently, pausing for a beat before confessing "I'm crazy about you Lois." At the startled look in her eyes, he smiled softly "You don't have to worry that I'm going to get down on one knee...." She grinned; he smiled back and continued "I was actually thinking of something a little more prosaic."

"Like what?" She asked curiously.

"Like maybe spending a night or two during the week here with you."

"Clark if you do that...."

"I know we'll have to be careful and I won't let anyone see me, but I wanna see you on more than just the weekend's babe." Reaching down, he clasped her hand, threaded their fingers together and squeezed gently "The weekend is over way too fast Lo, and then its 5 days before we see each other again."

"It's only four and a half days since you leave on Monday morning, and come back Friday afternoon." She replied ever practical.

"Yeah, but I have to leave really early on Monday morning because Metropolis is 3 hours ahead." When her mouth opened, he nodded and rolled his eyes "Yes I know that I can get here earlier on Fridays for the same reason in reverse so I make up the time then, but still...."

She chewed her lip and looked down. Tipping up her chin with his free hand, he looked into her eyes and saw the indecision. She hadn't said yes, but neither had she said no and he decided to take that as a positive sign. Lois was a decisive woman, if she was totally against the idea she would have said so without beating around the bush. "Why don't you take the weekend to think about it, and let me know before I leave on Monday?"

"And if say no?"

"You can so no, and I'll respect that." He assured her quietly "I'm not giving you an ultimatum Lois; I wouldn't do that because it's not fair. I'm just telling you what I'd like, but whatever you decide won't change anything. I'll still be back next Friday after work to spend the weekend with my girlfriend." His thumb brushed against her jaw line, while his eyes looked into hers to ensure that she could see his sincerity.

Her lips tilted, her eyes rolled lightly to the heavens "Why do you always have to say the right thing; it's very annoying."

He grinned lopsided "Did you forget that I was brought up by Martha and Jonathan Kent? Mom would have my hide if I tried to push a lady into anything she wasn't ready for."

"How would she know?"

He rolled his eyes exasperated "She's mom, it's like she has an inbuilt radar when I do something wrong. I used to think it was just my mom, but apparently it's a trait that mothers the world over seem to have."

She nodded in understanding "My dad was the same way with me when I was a kid, he usually knew when I was doing something that I shouldn't." She grinned and wiggled her brows "Believe me on an army base there's lots of trouble to be had, if you know where to find it."

"And I bet you knew where to find it?" He stated without hesitation.

"Uh huh, I had some great times, especially when I was a teenager." She let out a small chuckle "From the time I turned 15 I flirted shamelessly with all the cadets; all of whom were mostly scared of daddy...." She shook her head gently and sighed "But still, teenage boys just didn't cut it after being around military guys."

"So _that's_ why you never fell for my charm." Clark nodded as if finally figuring out the secrets to the universe, then sent his girlfriend a look of insult at her reply.

Lois figured that she couldn't let him live in his delusion for long, and asked with a touch of surprise "You had charm?"

"Of course I did." He replied indignantly.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you save all your somewhat dubious charm for one person?" She asked innocently, enjoying the way he wriggled uncomfortably.

"I'll shut up now." He cleared his throat sheepishly, sipped his drink and sent a charming smile her way "So getting back to what you were saying; did any of the cadets take your fancy?"

"Of course, I crushed on one guy after another, but there was one who was particularly special." She smiled sadly and continued soberly "I don't know if you'd remember him since it was so many years ago now, but one night I saw a guy named Wes who I used to know..."

Clark squeezed her hand and cut in quietly "I remember Lo; you said the two of you were close."

"We were; he was the first boy that I loved."

"The first...you mean?"

She nodded minutely "Yeah, so I understood how you felt when you thought Lana was dead." She pressed her lips together and smiled in melancholy before giving a light shrug "It hurt to know that a boy I'd loved, who'd been special to me was gone. It hurt even more, and consequently made me furious when I discovered that he was being used for wickedness against his will, and his good name was being blackened." She blinked away the tears that filled her eyes, and finished quietly but with feeling "He deserved better than that."

"Yes he did." Clark agreed softly, letting go of her hand to slip his arm around her waist, and press a kiss against the side of her head "I'm sorry Lois, I didn't realise it was so personal for you."

She pressed her face hard into his shoulder and shrugged "When I think of Wes now I remember the guy I used to know. The one who made me laugh when he couldn't hold his liquor, the guy who was headed for great things but made me feel special, the one who made me happy. I don't think about what was done to him." She shook off her introspection, lifted her head and pressed her lips to his "It was a long time ago now and I don't let it drag me down. When I left Smallville I was still so angry about Wes, but in the end knew that if I didn't let it go, it would play in my mind and end up destroying me; which wouldn't help him at all. So now I write about evil people who hurt innocents for their own selfish gain, and hope that that's enough."

"It is babe; I think Wes would be proud of you." He replied quietly and wiped away the tears sliding quietly down her cheeks "God knows I am."

"I hope so; I hope that he's finally at peace." She smiled tremulously and laid her forehead against his.

Sensing his mistress's distress, Fred sat up, laid his paw on her lap and whimpered. Lois patted the paw "I'm ok boy." Having one doggy paw in her lap, and one human arm around her waist, while his hand gently patted her thigh, made her to smile. Here they were, the two men in her life. Earlier they were doing important man things by tending the grill, and now they were doing important man things by giving her comfort. They were both larger than life, both complete saps, and she was somewhat afraid that she was becoming quite smitten with both of them.

Fred already had her love, and Clark seemed to be slipping under her guard more and more. It had taken 17 years for his charm to win her over. 15 of those years she hadn't seen nor given him a second thought and now....blowing out a deep breath, she looked at the man in question "How about we go inside, have some desert and discuss the one or two questions I have about you staying here a couple of nights during the week."

Seeing that she really was alright, he nodded "Ok."

Getting to his feet, he tugged her up, they grabbed their glasses, and after ushering Fred into the house, closed and locked the door.

Getting comfortable on the couch once again, they ate desert in silence while Lois organised her thoughts. He waited patiently, fortifying himself with a sip of wine ready for the questions that she had.

"Clark if you stay here during the week, how will you explain being in Metropolis during the day, then here after work, then back at the Planet working again the next day?" When his mouth opened, she held up a hand "We both know that you can fly here easily enough, but no one else knows that; so it wouldn't be fair for you to come, only to have to hide in case anyone sees you."

"Lo I'll be coming here after work, and leaving in the morning before most people are even awake. People don't tend to spend their weeknights socialising; they're usually at home relaxing, so it shouldn't be a problem." He took a sip of his drink, and lifted his brows in enquiry "Do you get a lot of visitors during the week?"

She shook her head "No, unless something's been pre-arranged, then it's usually on the weekends when I get together with my friends."

"In which case I won't have to hide since I'm here on Friday night and everyone knows it." He lifted his drink in a toast and smiled "It helps that Metropolis is 3 hours ahead, but even with the flight time etc, they think I don't arrive until about 9, but either way they all expect me to be here."

She nodded "True."

"I like your friends, but as much as I enjoy their company, spending time with them on the odd weekend is enough for me." He ran his finger down her cheek and smiled gently "It's you I want to see more off, so only seeing you on the nights that I stay during the week suits me just fine."

"Smooth talker." She teased lightly.

"It's true."

"Ok, but what about Superman; aren't you needed in Metropolis during the week?" Lois asked soberly.

"Well I've been thinking about that, but Metropolis doesn't own Superman Lo, he goes all over the world. I work there during the day, so I'll be on hand if anything crops up, but there's nothing to say that I have to be there all the time." He paused and continued quietly "If you say yes then all we have to do is leave the radio or TV on during the night, soft enough so that only I can hear it, and if anything happens either in Metropolis or anywhere else I can leave." He smiled slightly "That will also stop anyone from wondering if Superman's is secretly visiting Lois Lane during the week, because it won't just be Seattle that I'm in."

Her brow wrinkled "Clark you can't go flying off at every SOS that you hear; if you do that you'll never get any rest."

"I don't Lo, when I first started yeah I did, but I stopped doing that pretty quickly. I now wait to see what the emergency is, find out if it's already being tended to, and if it's not or if it's beyond the professionals help, then I step in." He placed his glass down and picked up her hand "I was dashing all over the place the last three weeks, because you weren't here and I wanted to keep busy, but I don't make a habit of that simply because I know that people need to try and help themselves."

She nodded firmly in agreement "Yes they do."

"I know Lo, it's hard to stand back and wait, it's harder again to not step in and fix the easy stuff, but I know that if people get in the habit of expecting me to show up, that it's not only dangerous but a disservice to the human race. Human's fight to live, they fight to help their fellow man, but if I'm always rushing in and saving the day, people might become complacent and not even try to help themselves. That in turn could lead to even more tragic consequences if I'm detained elsewhere, and can't get away."

"Exactly, and you're just one man Clark, you can't be everywhere at once. There are quite a few super heroes around, and more than likely they've all been in your position and realised the same thing."

"They have, I talked about it with the others in the League and they said the same thing. They said it is hard to stand back and wait, but sometimes it's necessary if only to ensure that people don't get in the habit of waiting to be rescued, as that could be the thing that kills them." He tilted his head and smiled "So getting back to the point, if I stay and we leave the TV or radio on at night, I'll be able to go if need be."

He'd obviously given this serious consideration before approaching her with it "How often were you thinking of staying?"

He coughed and smiled sheepishly "You mean on top of the weekends?" She nodded slowly "Maybe two or three nights during the week."

"If you do that, we'll virtually be living together." She chewed her lip uncertainly.

He tried again, hoping a different angle would be enough to change her mind "We won't be living together Lo, I'll still have my apartment and I'll stay there some nights, but I'd like to see more of you." The cautious look hadn't left her eyes, so he went on persuasively "Right now we only see each other on the weekends, and yeah some people might find it exciting...." When her mouth opened, he laughed lightly "Yes I'm one of them; I still haven't come down from the high I felt when I saw you in the restaurant." At her lifted brows he wiggled his in return "Babe you turned me on like a house afire that night and the flames are still burning hot. However, it feels like we're dating which is all well and good, but I want more than fun filled weekends. I want to experience banal normality with you Lo; I wanna be around when you're in a bad mood and need someone to yell at...."

She grinned incredulous "You want me to yell at you?"

He grinned back "You yell so beautifully." He lowered his voice and whispered "Do you know that when you were yelling at me in the bank, poking me with your finger; aside from feeling angry and aggravated myself, I was so turned on that I had to fold my arms tighter, just to stop myself from picking you up and kissing you to within an inch of your life." Her mouth dropped open; he nodded and grimaced lightly "Uh huh; I _**really**_ had to control my body's reaction; let's face it, my suit doesn't hide much so...."

Lois let out a peal of laughter, pressing the back of her hand against her mouth. When her laughter died down she beamed a smile at him "Do you know, that almost makes up for thinking you weren't averse to Bambi's many charms."

"Bambi was ok, but she's not you; so her many charms were wasted on me." He assured, before slipping his arm around her waist to cuddle her against his side "So what'd you think?"

She blew out a deep breath and felt her decision waver. She liked Clark a lot; in fact she was scared with just how much she did like him. But this was supposed to have been nothing more than a fling, and now it was starting to become serious; and she'd promised herself to never get suckered into a serious relationship again.

She lifted her eyes to his, saw the patience with not even a tinge of pushing and nodded slowly "Ok."

"Are you sure Lo, you don't have to say yes now. You can still take the weekend to think about it, or take the next 6 months if you need to. I don't want you to feel pressured, or boxed in." He lifted her hand and pressed his lips to her fingers once again "I won't be upset and I'll still be back next weekend, and the one after that and the one after that."

She smiled and letting go of her reservations at the honesty in his voice, nodded again "I'm sure."

He pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth and reassured "If you change your mind or don't want me to come one night, just let me know ok?"

She bobbed her head "You too."

He nodded in agreement, and sat back with Lois cuddled against his side, while internally his mind shouted hallelujah. He'd approached the situation just right. Expectations and demands would only have built her walls up; and although he'd wanted her to say yes, he hadn't wanted her to feel cornered. If she'd said no, he would have accepted it, he would respected it, and he would have brought it up again when she felt a bit more secure. However, as she'd said yes now, he wasn't going to question it any further; instead he'd spend his time showing her that letting him in a little more hadn't been a mistake.

After a rousing game of checkers, they retired to bed, but sleep was the last thing on either of their minds. The early hours of the morning found Lois lying on his chest, small shudders still quaked through her body, while his hands swept up and down her back, and his lips nuzzled against the side of her neck. Shifting off to lie at his side, Lois blew the hair of her face, lifted one languid hand to lay it on his chest and titled her face up to his.

He looked down, their eyes met and both smiled "It just keeps getting better doesn't it?"

"Yeah it does." She nodded and reached up to peck his lips with hers "I think I'm getting a crush on you Clark Kent."

Turning on his side to face her, he slipped his arm over her waist, unable to stop the smile stretching his lips from one corner of his mouth to the other "Is that because of the sex or me?"

"I don't know; it's been a long time since I've crushed on anyone." She smoothed her hand over his arm and pondered aloud "It definitely started with the sex, grew when I saw that you and Fred took to each other so quickly, thrived on even more sex, blossomed when I noticed that you and my dog were buddies, and now I think it's just you..." She paused for a beat then finished "...or maybe I'm just in a post coital high."

"Well I've got a crush on you as well, and it's all you Lois Lane; the sex is just the icing." He settled his mouth firmly against hers, and the arm around her waist lifted until his hand was sitting on her collar bone. Shifting slightly until his body covered hers, he lifted up on his forearms slightly and cupped her face in his hands, deepening the kiss. His mouth lifted allowing them both to catch their breath for a moment, before swooping down to settle over hers once again. Their lips separated, pressed together once again, separated, pecked gently before lifting clear and eyes opened "I'm sweet on you Lo, quite smitten in fact."

"And my dog?" She questioned with lifted brow.

"Well I haven't got a crush on him, but I'm very fond of the big lump." He replied rubbing his thumb along her jaw-line.

"He's fond of you too."

"Which is very lucky for me, because I have a feeling if he didn't like me; you would have shown me the door the first time I came calling."

"I would have given you dinner first." She gurgled out a laugh.

"Thank goodness he did like me then, because I got a whole lot more than dinner than night." He beamed, and dragging the bedcovers over them, lay down beside her once again.

The third time after she yawned, he spooned around her, and sighed hugely in contentment when she wiggled closer against his chest "Go to sleep babe, we have the whole weekend together now that you're home." She nodded sleepily, wished him goodnight, and was soon asleep.

He lifted up to look down at his love and smiled before pressing his face into her hair. She'd lived in Smallville for two years and he'd been utterly oblivious to just how precious she was. He hadn't seen her for 15 years after she left, and he'd been so caught up in his own life that he hadn't spared her a thought; and now three weeks without her felt like eons.

So far the baby steps he'd cautioned himself to take had been giant steps, but whatever he was doing had to be right, since Lois had all but agreed that she didn't want them to grow apart any more than he did.

Their relationship was moving forward by leaps and bounds and he was pleased. Lois had a crush on him; the words might be juvenile, but hearing them had caused his heart to jump. Listening while she'd fathomed it out had been amusing, but looking into her eyes and seeing the sincerity had almost made the breath catch in his throat; she'd meant it.

He in turn had told her how he felt using words that were soft enough, that she didn't shut down, or try to shut him out.

Now that he'd be staying over during the week, their relationship had shifted from fun sexy weekends into the stage of everyday living, and he was really looking forward to sharing that with her.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

_Three weeks later_

Clark looked through the glass door into the house, saw Lois standing behind the kitchen island eating chocolate and smiled. After stepping inside the house, he slid the door closed at his back and smiled again when Fred sat up at his entrance.

"Hey boy" He paused to give the mutt a pat on the head in greeting, before continuing toward his goal.

Lois looked over and smiled at him with delight. He stepped around the counter until he was beside her, slipped an arm around her waist, brushed his lips across her cheek and reached for a piece of chocolate "Hey babe."

The smile slipped off her face "That's it, that's all I get; boy talk about losing interest fast." She turned to lean against the bench and folded her arms "Now that you stay over most nights, you don't bother coming in and kissing me, you don't try to get my clothes off; now I'm lucky to get a 'hey babe' and a peck on the cheek before you begin stuffing your face."

He grinned and continued to enjoy the chocolate.

She thought about it for a moment before exhaling heavily in understanding "I know what's going on; you no longer find me sexy and exciting, now I'm just the old dragon of a girlfriend, right? I bet you don't even brag to your friends about what a tiger I am in bed anymore; now you probably just sit around complaining about me. I bet you roll your eyes and say 'well I'd better go guys, the old lady's waiting for me'." She smacked his arm and glowered "I'm just your old lady now, aren't I?"

He swallowed the last of the chocolate and nodded "Yep, now that you're sweet on me, I don't have to try and impress you anymore; and I do quite often drop your name into conversations with the guys. I tell them what a nuisance you are, complain that you're always ordering me around, demanding I do this that and the other." He gave her a proud, smug smile "I like reminding them that I have an old lady and they don't; they're all jealous of me."

He puckered up his lips and bent down, she smacked him on the arm again instead "Forget about all that; when was the last time you gave me flowers or brought me chocolates?" She asked pettishly.

"Yesterday, and I'm pretty sure these are the chocolates that I brought you." He pointed at the box on the counter.

Lois sniffed indignantly "When was the last time you threw me down on the nearest surface, ripped my clothes off and screwed me blind?"

"Last night."

"When was the last time I drove you crazy with desire and you couldn't wait another minute to have me?"

"This morning when I did you on the kitchen table." His voice quivered with laugher, and seeing the answering gleam in her eyes, he had to bit his lip hard not to shout out the laughter that was growing in his chest.

"When was the last time you kissed me like there was no tomorrow?"

"While I was nailing you on the kitchen table this morning...." he held up a hand, took a sip of the water sitting on the bench top and corrected "No sorry, I was in the midst of kissing you like crazy just before lunch, but had to leave for the Superman call that I've just come back from, remember?"

"Big deal..." she snorted indelicately "....that's all in the past. You can't use any of that as your defence." She pointed to the door "Get back out there, come back in and greet me properly."

Clark looked at Fred, and smiled "I'm being hen pecked boy."

"Yeah and if you wanna get a peck or anything else out of me buster, then you had better give me a better welcome than the one I just got."

"Yes dear." He walked casually back to the sliding door, pushed it open, stepped outside then came back in, rushed over and swooped Lois up into his arms. After seating her on the only empty space the kitchen island had available, his arms locked tight around her waist, as his smiling lips descended to cover hers.

He nibbled softly on her lips, swiped his tongue over the non-existent hurt, caught her bottom lip with his teeth to bite and suck softly, pecked and pressed their lips together, and what started out as fun, soon became a conflagration. Small gentle pecks became longer more ardent kisses as mouths opened and locked together, all teasing gone.

She loved to feel his mouth on hers, moving gently then harder before compelling hers to open to allow his tongue entrance. His tongue glided over her teeth, the roof of her mouth, the inside of her cheeks before skating over hers smoothly. Her arms clamped tight around his neck, when his lips hardened and he began to kiss her with absolute passion.

Clark slipped his hand under her t-shirt to stroke over the smooth warm skin of her back, and crushed her gently closer against his chest. When he felt that she needed to take a breath, he softened the kiss, reluctantly lifting his mouth from hers. Instead of taking the respite, Lois grasped a fist full of his hair, and pulled his mouth back to hers. Her tongue swirled and darted against his, then softened to brush tauntingly while retreating; enticing his to follow. His hands smoothed down to the small of her back, hers tugged his t-shirt up, pulled the zipper of his suit down to stroke over the rippling muscles of his back, while mouths continued to move against each others; never quite separating, only lifting long enough to re-slant before locking together once again.

They were both panting hard by the time their lips parted. He locked his arms tight around her waist, nuzzling against the side of her neck enjoying the scent of her perfume, and the feeling of her full ripe breasts heaving against his chest, as she continued to draw air into her overtaxed lungs.

His lips slid across to her cheek, drifted up to her ear and catching the lobe lightly with his teeth, sucked on it softly "Was that better?"

Lois blew out a heavy breath, cupped his face in her hands and nodded "Yep, now that's a proper greeting."

"I'll make sure to remember that." He promised, sliding his hands to the sides of her thighs to stroke gently "Lo..."

"Hmmm."

"You could never be my old lady babe."

She pouted "So you don't think of me as your old lady huh? What's up with that; am I not good enough to be your old lady?"

He lifted his eyes to the ceiling "Heaven help me but women are a contrary bunch; I don't think I can win this one."

She grinned and ruffled his hair "As long as you keep kissing me like that, we're good." Lois looked over at her dog, and her smile grew wider at seeing his head cocked to the side "I'm not sure if Fred thinks we were trying to eat each other's heads, or if he's just confused by what we were doing?"

Clark looked over, saw the dog's curiosity and let out a shout of laughter "Poor guy. It's ok Fred this is how humans do it." He paused for a beat and continued with a light chuckle "Although what we were doing last night might have looked familiar to you...."

Lois slapped her hand against his mouth "Shhh."

He licked her palm, and sniggered lightly when she rapidly removed it from his mouth to wipe it over the shoulder of his t-shirt. After helping her down from the bench top, she turned him around to slide the zipper of his suit back up, while Clark reached for another piece of chocolate and popped it into his mouth.

"You didn't have lunch before getting called away, did you want some now?" Lois looked over her shoulder to talk to him, while washing her hands.

"Nah I'm good, it'll be dinner time soon so I'll wait." He walked over to take a seat on the couch in the family area, and had no sooner sat down then Fred trotted over, jumped up and sat beside him.

She wiped her hands, looked over at her guys and smiled "My friend Abra called while you were out; she and her husband Sam are coming to spend a few days in Seattle next week."

Clark smiled "Abra; it was her wedding you were attending, when I saw you in that restaurant, right?"

"Yeah, so anyway I was thinking about having them and my other friends over for dinner next Saturday night. We'd all get together anyway, but instead of going out to a restaurant, everyone can just come here; what'd you think?"

"Well I'd love to meet the woman who was instrumental in my finding you again, but I have another idea."

"What?" Lois asked, walking over to take a seat on the facing recliner.

"Instead of a dinner, why don't we have a party and invite both my friends and yours." He reached out, picked up her hand and tugged until she was sitting beside him "I'd like our friends to get to know each other, and the best way to do that is by having an informal party."

She smiled in return "Actually that's not a bad idea; it's been a while since I had a party, but it's kind of short notice isn't it?"

"Yeah, but I'd think the majority of people will be able to make it. It's not like we're all 20 and burning up the social scene anymore...." When her mouth opened, he shook his head lightly "Yeah, yeah I know, I was never the party animal, but getting back to the point; your friends are all married, and some of them have kids so they don't tend to go out every weekend, my friends usually spend their weekends doing super-hero duties and/or dating so it should be ok."

She bobbed her head in agreement "Ok, so we'll have a party. What time do you think would suit best; about seven?"

"Yeah..." he paused then shook his head "...actually no, let's make it about 6. That way people can have a few snacks and drinks while they get comfortable with each other, and we'll eat around 7."

"Ok, well I'll call my friends now, you call yours and we'll see how many can make it." He nodded then paused "I'll just go home and grab my book; I don't have everyone's numbers pre-set in my phone."

Lois waved absently, picked up her phone book and began flipping pages. Clark returned a few minutes later and was in the process of making his first call when "Clark...." he looked up "Invite your mom and Chloe as well." He grinned and nodded his head in accord.

Thirty minutes later he put down the phone with a pleased smile and turned to Lois "Well, how'd you go?"

"Good, everyone can make it, what about you?"

"The same; mom wants to know if you'd like some help, or if she can make anything?"

Lois grinned "Your mom just can't help herself, can she? I'll call and tell her that she's not to do anything except attend. Actually I have a better idea; I'll ask her and Chloe if they wanna come on Friday night and stay through the weekend."

"Does this mean no sex?" He asked downcast.

"Yep." She replied promptly and patted his arm in comfort "Don't worry, the party's still a week away, so I'm sure you'll get plenty of opportunities to nail me before then."

He beamed in return.

_Late the following Friday afternoon_

"Hello dear." Martha stepped into the house ahead of Clark, walked around the kitchen island and embraced Lois.

"Hi Martha."

"Lo..." at his voice the women looked over "...I'm just going to pick up Chloe and we'll be back soon ok?" She nodded, he placed his mom's case at the side of the door and left.

"Take a seat Martha, I'm just getting the coffee ready and will join you in a few minutes."

"Would you like some help?"

"No I'm good thanks."

Hearing the scratching on the glass, Martha turned around to find Fred looking at them from at behind the sliding door. Smiling, she retraced her steps, slid the door across to give the dog entrance, then dutifully scratched his head when he butted her hand with it "Hello boy, have you been told that you're coming to my house next week?" Fred cocked his head and woofed uncertainly.

"Clark's taken him on a few joy flights around the city at night just to get him used to the experience of flying." Lois informed her in an amused voice.

Martha grinned in delight "How'd he go?"

Lois giggled in response "He loves it so much that Clark now only has to step towards the back door at night time, and Fred trots along after him expecting to be taken along; isn't that right Freddy?" He woofed again at the sound of his name; smiling Lois turned back to Martha "When Clark has to leave for a Superman call at night time and can't take him, Fred either sits at the door and whines because he's been left behind, or he sits next to me and pouts."

Martha laughed at the image Lois' words had wrought "That sounds really cute."

"It is; my dog has become very fond of your son." Lois titled her head and considered "In fact, I'm pretty sure they're now best friends."

"And you?"

"I'm just the ordinary boring girl." She replied, and when Fred came over to lick her hand, she looked down at him then back up at Martha "Sorry, I'm the boring girl that feeds the two of them, and the tyrant that says 'no you can't go with Clark, you have to stay at home with me'." She finished in a tone so dry that Martha once again chuckled.

Lois waved her hand to the couch in the family area "Anyway, why don't you make yourself comfortable, Clark will be back soon with Chloe, and then we can have some coffee and cake."

"I'll just go and wash my hands first." She retreated to the bathroom and returned a few minutes later to take a seat at the kitchen island "Are you sure that you don't want any help with the party?"

Lois shook her head and tossed aside the dishtowel after drying her hands "There's really nothing to do; the food's all being catered, including the hot and cold snacks, and it's all being delivered late tomorrow afternoon, so the most I'll have to do is put stuff in the oven to keep warm. My housekeeper always ensures everything is spic and span so I don't have to worry about cleaning up, so I just want you to just enjoy yourself."

"Well then, can I help with dinner tonight?"

"Eva's taken care of it." Lois replied and when the older woman's mouth opened, she held up her hand and chuckled lightly "Martha Kent, you are not going to do anything, but take it easy and have fun this weekend."

"I'll make lunch tomorrow afternoon..." Lois opened her mouth, but this time she was forestalled by Martha's upraised hand "Your housekeeper doesn't work on the weekends, so I'll care of that." Finally reaching a compromise, the two women grinned at each other and nodded.

At the entrance of Chloe and Clark, the two women came over to greet the younger "The coffee will be ready soon, so make yourselves comfortable while I finish getting the tray ready."

"I'll get it babe, you ladies sit down." Lois nodded, missing the look of delight the two women shared at not only her casual acceptance of Clark's endearment, but of his ease in their surroundings.

It was clear that things had progressed even further in Lois and Clark's relationship since the last time she'd visited Seattle. Then she'd noticed their relationship had grown since the first time Lois had had re-visited the farm; now the familiarity and happiness the two shared was clearly visible. Martha felt her heart bloom with joy and expectation that the woman she would be proud to call her daughter in law, would marry her boy one day soon.

Chloe was pleased that Clark had made good on his promise of ensuring her cousin knew that she could depend on, and trust him. Lois had obviously opened up enough to let Clark in. She might or might not still be wary, but it was clear that her heart wasn't completely closed to love, and she was glad for both of them.

The three ladies made themselves comfortable on the couch and chairs gathered in the family area, and when Fred came over demanding attention, Chloe duly greeted him.

"Clark, would you mind getting the cake Eva made; it's in the fridge." He nodded, placed the tray on the table, and retrieved the cake before taking a seat.

"I noticed the heat wave Metropolis was having seems to have passed somewhat." Lois commented to her cousin.

Chloe rolled her eyes and nodded "Yeah thank goodness, it cooled down for about a week, then came back with a vengeance for a few days, but I think the worst is finally over at last."

Once he'd finished afternoon tea, Clark carried the women's bags into the spare room, then stepped into the master bedroom, headed straight to the en-suite for a quick shower, and returned a few minutes later dressed casually in jeans and t-shirt.

"Lois has been telling me about your flying lessons with Fred sweetie."

He grinned and reached over to pat the mutt in question "Yeah, he loves it."

"Flying lessons?" Chloe asked interested, and when filled in chuckled lightly "Ok, you have to do it while we're here."

Clark rolled his eyes but nodded obediently when his mom likewise requested a demonstration.

The night passed pleasantly with easy conversation, good food and delightful company.

Lying in bed spooned around Lois, Clark's fingertips drifted lazily up and down her thigh, and figuring it was worth a short, he trailed his lips up the side of her neck to her jaw, blew gently in her ear and whispered "Any chance?"

"No." She laughed quietly.

"They won't hear."

"Give me a break."

He let her go and flopped onto his back "It's not fair..." At Lois' lack of response, he turned his head to look at her, only to find that not only hadn't she turned around, but that she seemed to be ignoring him. Feeling incredibly insulted at her lack of attention, he poked her gently with his finger "I said it's not fair."

"I heard you."

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Do you think it's fair?"

She turned over and crawled on top of him; he grinned in anticipation but ended by pouching out his bottom lip at her reply "It's not gonna happen, so get over it."

His hands slid over her back, dragging gently against the silky material of her nightdress, and with a quick flip he tucked her under him, before bending down to take her lips in a long deep kiss. Lifting his mouth slightly from hers, he stroked the hair away from the side of her face before kissing her gently once more. Lying back down, he hooked an arm around her waist, settled himself comfortably around her, and sighed in contentment when she fell asleep with her head nestled in the crook between his shoulder and neck.

_Late the next morning_

Clark stood in the watchtower, grinning at the mutters and looks being thrown in his direction from his friends. Holding up his hands in peace he tried once again "Guys, all I'm suggesting is that I fly all of you to Seattle to save you having to bother with ...."

"Forget it." Bart cut him off mid sentence.

"No way." AC chimed in.

"What'd you think we are man, sissy girls who need you to fly us somewhere?" Victor scowled with a quick head shake.

"We'll take my jet." Oliver and Bruce declared simultaneously then turned to sneer at each other.

Taking a seat on the couch, Clark settled himself comfortably among the group "Why don't you flip a coin."

The two men nodded "Fine; and whoever wins will fly everyone to Seattle agreed?"

Oliver dug out a quarter but halted the flip when Bruce held up a hand "I agree, but if I lose I'm not having Clark fly me to your plane."

Oliver shook his head "Me either, ok well we both have private airfields right?" At Bruce's nod, he grinned and addressed everyone "Then how about we all pile into a car big enough to carry us, Clark can fly the car to the airfield, and then we won't feel stupid being carried in Superman's arms; nor will anyone see us?"

The men all thought about it, nodded and agreed. When the coin was flipped Bruce smiled "Gentlemen it'll be a pleasure flying all of you to Seattle."

Oliver sulked for a moment then brightened "And we'll use my limo to be transported to Bruce's place." He turned and lifted his brows in Clark's direction "Does Lois live far from the airport, because if so I'll be happy to organise a car, and drive all of us to her house as well."

"I say we flip for that too." Bruce chimed in.

"Get stuffed." Oliver replied without missing a beat "You're flying us to Seattle, let me have some fun."

Clark smirked "She only lives about 20 minutes from the airport."

"That's far enough away to need a car, and if we have to leave for an emergency, we don't want to be worrying about taxis or anything else. We can just give our farewells, drive around the corner and you can fly us to wherever." Once again all the men nodded at the solution.

"Well guys I'm glad that you've all come to this arrangement, and don't worry I'll make sure that no one knows all the big strong men of the Justice League, needed Superman's help to get to a party." He paused and tacked on with false modestly "Of course being Superman, I personally don't need to fly anywhere in a tin can like you lot do but...." When they all began to hurl abuses at his head he grinned even wider.

_Several hours later..._

Keeping once arm around Lois' waist, Clark waved his free hand at his friends "Lo you already know Oliver and AC, and I'm sure you remember Bart and Victor." She nodded and greeted each one in turn "This is Bruce, you haven't met him bef..."

"Actually I think we have met." Bruce cut in with a light frown "I can't remember where or when, but I'm sure we have."

Lois tilted her head and her brow wrinkled slightly "Yeah I think you're right."

"Have you ever been to Gotham City?"

She nodded "Yeah once or twice, so we probably shared an elevator or something."

He shook his head in rebuttal "I don't think it was that transient..."

"Maybe you dated once or twice." Clark commented dryly, tightening his arm around her waist a little more.

Instead of agreeing, they both shook their heads and replied simultaneously "I'd remember that." They stopped, looked at each other and shared a small laugh.

"It'll come to me, and more than likely it'll happen about 3 o'clock in the morning." She finished with a smile.

He grinned in return "Well if you remember let me know, because I hate a mystery."

"You too." She put in and Bruce nodded in agreement.

Clark noted that his friends were all looking between the two of them with speculation, and felt his stomach dive. He hoped that Lois and Bruce hadn't shared a night of passion in their distant past. It didn't matter how long ago it had been, he still hoped that wasn't how they knew each other. Two of his friends had already dated Lois, albeit AC was only for a couple of days, but he didn't like remembering that two of his friends had played tonsil hockey with his love, even if it was over 15 years ago. He was even less comfortable thinking that she might have shared more with another friend. Admittedly neither he nor Lois were even close to being virgins when they got together, so if that was how she knew Bruce then he'd just have to live with it, but he still hoped that wasn't it.

***

An hour later the party was in full swing, kids played in the backyard, Fred revelled in the attention lavished on him from everyone, and both groups of friends meshed nicely.

The women gravitated towards each other as did the men, the groups combined then parted, people moved back and forth between the gazebo and the kitchen cum family room. The food was delicious and abundant, the liquor plentiful, and the weather perfect.

The women had all taken to each other immediately; Lois' girlfriends had welcomed his mom, Chloe and the women of the Justice League into their circle upon first acquaintance. The women had split up into small groups chatting about this and that, came back together, then split up again to form new groups. The sound of feminine voices raised in either laughter or chatter had been almost non-stop and he was pleased.

His friends had quickly bonded with the other men as they debated the merits of football over baseball, which flowed into a hearty discussion on which teams were the best and going to win that year. Looking around Clark couldn't see anyone that looked uncomfortable, or out of place and his heart warmed that his and Lois' friends had melded so well.

When she slipped into the house, he excused himself and followed to find her in the pantry behind the kitchen

"Everything ok Lo?"

"Uh huh, I'm just getting a couple of things before we serve dinner, could you give me a hand." When he slipped his arms around her waist and began to nuzzle her neck, she laughed lightly "That's not the kind of hand I had in mind."

He grinned and rubbed his cheek against the side of her head "Everyone seems to be getting along."

"Hmm." She nodded but when she began to pull away he tightened his arms "Um Clark, we have guests, and if we don't feed them more than snacks very shortly, they're not going to be happy."

"In a minute." He replied softly, turning her around to face him "Lo, about Bruce..." She lifted her brows and waited patiently "Do you think you know him from um...?" He trailed off and shrugged uncomfortably.

"From hooking up with him, and having sex sometime in the past?" He lifted one shoulder half-heartedly, she shook her head and smiled "No, I've met him, but it wasn't anything as racy as that."

He blew out a soft breath and pressed his forehead against hers "I'm glad, even though it wouldn't have made any difference if you had, I can't say that it hasn't been on my mind and made me feel a little jealous, so I'm glad all the same." His smile widened in relief "I'm especially pleased that I no longer have to kill him, and hide the body afterwards."

She laughed lightly and pressed her lips to his chin "Men!"

He shrugged unrepentant "It's the nature of the beast babe; men are territorial by nature."

She nodded "Ok, so tell me this; Lana isn't the only woman that you've had sex with before me right?"

He shook his head "No, before we were divorced she was, and for the next three years while I did my training there was no one, but I didn't live like a monk the two years that I was travelling. There were a few women that I slept with; nothing serious on either side, but still..."

To stop the flow of words, she simply pressed her fingers against his lips "I may not be territorial, but I don't need to hear how you've been sowing your wild oats for the past two years y'know; a simple yes or no would have done." He grinned at her tart tone. She rolled her eyes lightly and continued "How about this; if either of us meet someone that we've been with in the past, and that person ends up being a friend of the other, we'll just avoid them like the plague afterwards."

"Deal." He nodded in agreement "Do you think we should we have a signal?"

"A signal! Well I suppose we could furtively whisper to each other; oh by the way we can't see John Smith or Jane Brown anymore because I've done them?" She chortled lightly "Or even better, we can mime the act of sex with our hands, and then cross our fingers like we're warding off vampires."

He chuckled in return and pressed his lips against hers "God you're a smart ass."

"Yeah I am, but at least I'm not the one who wanted to have a signal." She snickered, shaking softly with laughter. Lifting her hands to cup his face, she smiled "Unless we've had sex with most of the people in the free world, we shouldn't have any problems."

He nodded but pouted for effect "Ok, but I still like the signal idea."

She leant up and whispered in his ear "Listen Superman, we're just trying to avoid uncomfortable situations, not take the enemy down with stealth, so I think we can forgo using signals."

"Why do I put up with you?" He wondered aloud, then smacked his forehead "Oh that's right, it's because you're hot." She smirked, and bending his head, he pressed his lips lightly against hers once more before helping her to gather the few things she had come to collect initially.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

Once all the food, with the associated crockery, cutlery etc was set out on the kitchen island, the children were served and seated at the table set aside for them, and then dinner was called. While everyone was serving themselves Lois fed Fred, and returned to wash her hands before helping herself to a plate. When she looked around for somewhere to sit, Clark patted the seat beside himself, and smiling she sat down to enjoy pleasant conversation and good food. Feeling pleasantly replete she sat back, nursing a glass of wine, while chatting to Bruce and Martha, and smiled when Fred trotted into the house to sit by her side.

Bruce looked at the behemoth and grinned "He's a beauty Lois."

"Thanks." She rested one hand on the dog's head, running her fingertips softly between his ears.

"If you ever don't want him..."

"Not gonna happen." She replied promptly with a quick laugh.

"Well then do you know where I can get one like him?" He asked, reaching over to scratch the dog under his chin.

She shook her head "Sorry; he's one of a kind."

"Don't be surprised to find your dog's missing when the nights over Lo; a few of us have our eye on him." Oliver chimed in with a grin.

She smiled complacently "You can try, but you'll never be able to carry him."

"I'll give it a shot." Bart moved around the couch, tucked his arms around the dog and tried to lift him up. Fred just yawned hugely in response. Ignoring the good natured ribbing from his everyone, their hoots of laughter, he tried again without success.

"You're too scrawny Bart, let me try." Victor bumped his friend out of the way, flexed his arms, rubbed his hands together, likewise tried to lift the mutt of the floor; and failed.

"My turn." the men egged each other on, then booed when each one failed. The children were shrieking in laughter at their daddies, while the women just rolled their eyes and shook their heads.

When Clark re-took his seat beside Lois after trying and failing, she rubbed his back in comfort and whispered "Now that was quite a show."

He ducked his head, bit his lip and nodded sadly.

Seeing the sad cast to Fred's face, Lois patted his head consolingly "I know boy, but what can you do?" He sighed and flopped down on the floor "That's it Freddy, show them that you've had enough of their nonsense." He let out a mournful wail, which promptly caused everyone to laugh.

As it was still daylight, the children were shooed outside to play, with the cautionary reminder they weren't to leave the backyard, while the adults continued to converse lightly of this and that. When Bruce turned to make a laughing remark to someone, Lois cocked her head, and the light bulb switched on.

"I remember now...." Lois smiled at Bruce "...Spring break, Miami Beach 2007; you were one of the judges for the wet t-shirt competition."

Recognition dawned and his smile grew to match hers "Yeah I was, and if I remember correctly, you were the winner; Miss Miami Beach wet t-shirt for 2007."

Lois smiled, bobbed her head and pointed to herself "That's me; I still wear that title with pride."

"You should, the competition was fierce, yet you were the winner." He nodded firmly.

"How'd you get that job Bruce? Can anyone apply, maybe you could recommend me?" Bart asked eagerly.

Clark smacked him lightly in the head, before turning back to them "So what exactly does this competition entail?"

"You've never seen a wet t-shirt competition?" Lois elbowed him lightly "All it takes is a bunch of girls wearing bikini bottoms and a t-shirt, while someone dumps a lot of water over them."

"A lot of guys tend to be present as well.' Bruce supplied helpfully.

Lois nodded and added seriously, although her voice quivered slightly with mirth "Beer isn't mandatory, but it does tend to be on hand at these prestigious events also."

Clark sneered good natured at both of them "Well carry on, what happened?"

"Well first I had the onerous task of being one of the judges, then I had the tiresome duty of putting a sash on the winner." Bruce shook his head sadly "And as if all of that wasn't bad enough, I then had irksome responsibility of kissing her."

Everyone groaned in mock pity.

Lois just snorted lightly "Oh please, everyone was yelling at him to kiss me..." she turned laughing eyes to their audience, bringing them into the conversation "So he put his arm around my waist, and yelled into the mic; 'should I kiss her guys, what'd you think, should I?'"

Laughing at the telling, everyone urged them to continue with the rest of the story.

"By the time he actually got around to kissing me, everyone was going nuts." She put in lightly.

Bruce threw back his head in laughter "They were college kids; if I didn't play along they would have pilloried me."

"You laid one hell of a kiss on me." She grinned in return.

He inclined his head and smiled hugely "You were Miss wet t-shirt, a man doesn't get to kiss the winner of that title every day y'know."

"I do." Clark waved his hand with a proud grin, causing all to laugh even harder.

***

After the party wound down, and there only remained those of the household, plus the few members of the Justice League who hadn't already left; Bruce turned to his friend "Hey Clark, why don't you show us how you struggled to lift Fred up earlier."

Clark grinned fast and bright "I don't know what in the world you're talking about."

"I think Bruce is talking about you pretending to not being able to lift the dog." J'onn put in gently, before turning to another member of the league "I was quite impressed with his acting; what say you Dianna?"

"Oh yes, if I didn't know he was faking...." She trailed off with a quick laugh.

Hal just snorted rudely "I liked the phony grunt he gave."

"Yes that was the crowning touch." Martha put in cheekily, causing all to laugh.

"Mom!" Clark chuckled in protest.

After good nights and thanks were exchanged, Dianna, J'onn and Hal stepped outside the back door and with a final wave, flew to their respective homes.

The others left by the front door, and while Lois, Chloe and Martha cleaned up in the kitchen, Clark walked his friends outside to their car.

"You're a hell of a lucky guy Clark; Lois is first class all the way." Victor replied soberly.

He nodded and smiled in satisfaction "I know."

"I think her dog is all the proof you need that she's a sucker for anything different." Bart put in quietly.

Clark nodded "Yeah, most people would think he was too big to be loveable, but she's crazy about him."

"I'd say that she's crazy about you too."

"She's getting there and I'm doing everything I can to ensure it happens."

"I like the way she didn't even hesitate to remind me where we'd met years ago." Bruce smiled slightly "Some women wouldn't feel comfortable recalling the crazy or silly things they did way back when. They'd either pretend it never happened, or say they were too drunk to remember, but Lois can still laugh about it, and that takes guts."

"Yeah, Lo was always a plucky one." Oliver agreed then turned to Clark "Well my tux is standing ready for when you call and inform me there's a wedding in the works." He smiled jingling the keys in his pocket.

"Hopefully one day soon she'll decide to make an honest man out of me."

"And if she doesn't...." AC questioned frankly.

"Then I'll happily live in sin with Lois, instead of being securely married to anyone else." He replied sincerely "She's it for me guys; I want marriage, but if she never does then it won't matter as long as we're together."

"Do you really mean that?" At his firm reiteration, Bruce smiled "I'm glad Clark, I've never been married but I've had quite a few relationships, so I know that one person pushing the other into doing something they don't want to, only ends with both of them being resentful. Every single argument comes back to how one person pushed, and the other had to be pushed. It doesn't make for a happy life."

Clark nodded in agreement "I know, and I'm not going to lose Lois by either pushing her, or by being resentful if she never wants to get married. I'm just grateful that despite being wary, she's opened up enough to let me inside."

Oliver slapped him on the back "Hmm, and at one time you said that you wouldn't stand in my way if I wanted to be with Lois." He scratched his chin and grinned "What would you say now I wonder?"

Clark slapped him on the back in return lightly, but with enough pressure to make him stagger slightly "Don't test it."

Oliver laughed and AC stepped forward "You know I never did get to spend much time with Lois years ago, and we _**were**_ sweet on each other, so maybe I should...."

"Maybe you shouldn't." Clark cut in with a genial smile.

"Gentlemen, it's obvious that Clark got Lois by default; right buddy?"

His brows flew up "Default?" He questioned politely.

"Yep, see I wasn't there the night you ran into her at the restaurant..."

"Yes Bruce thanks for reminding me about that. Why didn't you come by the way?"

"I was going to, but a little funny business came up at the last minute so I had to pull out."

Understanding that his friend was referring to the Joker, Clark nodded.

"Anyway, be grateful that I couldn't make it." Bruce replied with a cocky smile and slapped Clark on the back.

"Why?"

"Because I would have given you a run for your money when it came to getting Lois..." he waved his hand dismissively at the men grouped around "...unlike this lot who just let you waltz off with her, I wouldn't have been so polite."

"Is that right?"

"That's exactly right."

"You wouldn't have gotten her."

"Yes I would."

"No."

"Yes."

"I knew Lois years ago, so that kind of gave me an edge don't you think?" Clark cocked his brow in challenge, while his lips quivered in betrayal.

"Actually, I would have thought since you made such a dick of yourself over your ex-wife in front of Lois, that my not knowing her before would have been in my favour."

"Bastard!" Clark snorted in amusement.

Bruce grinned quick and sharp "Hey we've all made dicks of ourselves over a girl at some point, but at least we didn't do it in front of someone we're now trying to impress."

"Ooooh, low blow." Victor commented to the fascinated audience.

"It was a good one, but low just the same." Bart chuckled, and holding out a fake mike turned to the other men "Average man on the street, what say you?"

"I'd give it a definite 9." AC nodded with a smile.

"It could have been better." Oliver snickered "Bruce didn't even mention that he crowned the lovely Ms Lane as Miss wet t-shirt."

"Hmm, hmmm," Stroking his chin, Bart nodded seriously before thrusting his fist under Clark's nose "What do have to say in reply sir?"

Clark flexed his arms "I'll give you a reply." Bart quickly put his hand down and began to whistle cheerfully.

Snickering lightly, Clark folded his arms and stood in classic Superman pose "I still owe you for kissing my girl Bruce."

"She wasn't yours at the time."

"That doesn't matter, it's the principle of the thing." He replied loftily, before turning to look at Oliver and AC "Hmm."

"You know I don't really wanna get to know Lois better." AC put in quickly then turned to Oliver "How about you?"

"Who's Lois?" Oliver scratched his head "I don't remember dating anyone called Lois."

With a quick laugh, Clark slapped his friends lightly on the back "Ok, so call me when Bruce's plane lands and I'll fly the car to your respective home cities." When their mouths opened, he rolled his eyes "Yes, I'll make sure that no one will see you, and being that it's dark will also help."

"Actually you don't have to worry about it; we're all staying at Bruce's place tonight, so we're good."

He nodded and with a quick wave the men piled into the car and were gone.

***

When he returned inside it was to find the kitchen and family room empty, and following the sound of chatter found the women all comfortably ensconced in the lounge room. "Where's Fred?"

"Bed..." Lois replied, and quickly covered her mouth to suppress the yawn that began to escape "Excuse me; so we were talking about going to the zoo tomorrow; what'd you think?"

"The zoo?"

"Yeah, I don't know what brought it up, but somehow we got onto the subject of large animals, I told your mom and Chlo they should see the size of the Komodo dragon that I saw at Woodland Park Zoo last year, they said they haven't been to the zoo for years, so we thought we'd go tomorrow."

He nodded "Well I haven't been for years either so it'll be fun."

After a little more conversation the two women parted for bed, while Lois and Clark snuggled down into the couch to relax "Miss wet t-shirt eh?"

"Uh huh." She nodded and looked up at him with a half smile "When I left Smallville I just wanted to forget everything. I was angry about Wes, had almost gotten myself killed and would have died if Chloe hadn't found me, and that made me think y'know. I was 20 years old, and used to know what having fun was, but since taking up residence in Smallville, I'd virtually turned into a nun with no social life." She shrugged and lifted her feet to sit them on the coffee table "At that age you should be enjoying yourself with your friends, not holding down two jobs while trying to solve world problems. Responsibility and all that crap would be coming soon enough, so why let myself get caught in the net beforehand. Anyway, I decided enough was enough, contacted a couple of my college girlfriends, found out they were headed to Miami Beach, and joined them to party hard with the rest of the college crowd."

He hugged her closer to his side and nodded "Wish I did that."

She patted his chest lightly "Well while you were busy getting married to Lana, solemnly intoning the words 'I take this woman to be my lawful wedded wife', I was surrounded by a few hundred college guys all yelling out 'show us your tits'."

Clark let out a bark of laughter "Show us your tits?"

"Well yeah, I mean college guys really know how to romance the ladies." She smiled lopsided.

His lips twitched "Well I know that you were facing a tough crowd, high school boys are impressed with most any pair of boobs they see, but college guys have much more discerning taste."

"Especially when they're stinking drunk, and salivating at seeing all the girl's hooters in wet t-shirts." Lois replied seriously, biting her lip to hold in the laughter.

He snickered, pulled down his glasses, took a quick squiz, pushed his glasses back up and nodded "You'd still win."

Lois preened "Thanks."

He lifted his hands, cupped them and moved in on her "Now for the final check."

She chortled and slapped his hands away "Leave 'em alone."

"But I have to give them a final check." He sulkily pointed out.

"They're not cantaloupes." She replied between giggles.

"Funny you should say that..." He guffawed and laughed harder when she slapped his arm "Ok, forget about the final check; can I at least get a quick grope?"

"No."

"Well that's just plain unfair, I think the boyfriend of Miss Miami Beach wet t-shirt for 2007, should get touching privileges."

"I think he should get a smack." She returned promptly.

He grinned and held a hand against his heart theatrically "Aww babe, I didn't know you liked the rough stuff; ok you can spank me."

She let out a loud squeal of laughter, and had to press her face against his shoulder until the giggles petered out to hiccupping gasps. Lifting her face after a couple of minutes, she wiped away the tears of mirth and shook her head "Gees you're a deviate."

"Thank you." He preened as she had done earlier "But you bring it out in me."

"You're blaming me?" She asked incredulous.

He nodded piously "Uh huh, see the city girl in you brings out the debauched and depraved nature in this small town boy..." He leant down to whisper softly "I was the unsuspecting fly that was enticed into your web, and now I can't get out."

She just sniffed haughtily in reply.

Standing, he tugged her up and slipped an arm around her waist "C'mon wicked woman it's time for bed."

After ensuring all the doors were locked and bolted, they retired to their room, completed their nightly ablutions then crawled into bed.

"It was a nice night."

"Yeah it was."

"I'm glad that I finally got to meet your friend Abra, if only to thank her for getting married in Metropolis." He tipped up her chin and pressed his lips against hers lightly "If she hadn't, goodness knows how long it would have been before we met up again."

"Again?" Lois clarified with lifted brows.

"Again." He repeated confidently "More than likely I would have met you one day when you got yourself in trouble..." he ignored her light snort of disagreement and continued "...but I'm glad that I didn't have to wait for that day."

"I'll ignore that remark, and remind you that I didn't need help in the 15 years we didn't see each other." She replied snootily.

"You did when you were in Smallville." He pointed out drolly.

"Hah, more often than not I ended up saving your ass."

"Excuse me."

"You heard me."

He lifted up and smiled down at her "I'll ignore that, and repeat how glad I am that I found you almost as soon as I returned from travelling." Not giving her time to reply, he bent and fastened his mouth to hers.

The kiss started gently then became harder and deeper. She lifted one hand and tangled her fingers in his hair, while his hand cupped the side of her cheek. Setting himself over her carefully so not to crush her under his weight, his free hand swept up and down her side over the silk of her nightdress. Mouths lifted slightly, came back together, lips caressed as tongues stroked and meshed languidly. Lips parted, pressed together then separated slowly. His eyes traced over her face, his thumb brushed over her bottom lip lightly "Tomorrow night mom and Chloe go home..." She nodded minutely "Then tomorrow night, I'm going to kiss you again in just the same manner, and I'm not going to stop." He vowed softly.

Her lips lifted slightly, her hands stroked over his back "Promise?"

"Mmm hmm." Lying back down, he tucked the blankets more securely around them "Lois..."

"Yeah."

"I'm really glad that I found you again." He slipped his hand under her nightdress, smoothed it up until his palm was sitting just under her breast.

"So am I." She admitted softly, lifting her hand to sit it on his, before sleep claimed her.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

_Two weeks later_

Clark panted harshly into the side of Lois' neck, felt her heart hammer heavily against his own, and using the last of his energy, rolled off her to flop onto the bed at her side "You're a hellion woman."

She let out a small huff of laughter in reply "It was your fault."

"Mine." He puffed out, attempting to lift up on his elbow to look down at her, but fell back onto the bed helplessly "I didn't do anything."

She tried to speak, gave up, lifted her hand to wave, but ended by wiggling her fingers instead. After a few minutes she exhaled one last deep breath, sighed contentedly, stretched voluptuously, then turned on her side, smiled wickedly and rubbed her foot up and down his calf.

"Again!" He asked incredulous.

Her laughter spilled out and echoed around the room. Shaking her head she pressed her lips to his chin "No, I'm good for now."

Clark shook his head amazed "I now know what it feels like to be ravished." He lifted his arms high and stretched, raked his hands through his hair then hooked an arm around her waist and lifted her to lie on top of himself "And it feels fantastic."

She giggled in reply; he turned his head to the side before turning to smile at her once again "I don't see anything on my shoulder, but later I'll have to check to see if your claw marks are carved into my back."

She smirked and pressed a kiss against his shoulder "Poor baby."

"Like hell! If I have scratches I'm gonna drop in at the Watchtower, so that I can accidently on purpose show them off to the guys." He smugly pronounced.

"And if you don't have any?" She tittered.

He frowned lightly then brightened "Then I'll just have to casually mention that I can't help anyone right now, because I'm completely worn out from sex."

She sniggered and began to move off him, but his arms tightened "So how was it my fault?"

"Well you arrived and said hello."

"Uh huh..." He encouraged.

"That's it."

"Would it be inappropriate for me to let out a Tarzan yell?" He asked politely, while his eyes shone with delight. Her mouth opened, but he didn't give her time to reply "Forget that, I have something even better." Her brows quirked curiously; in return he sent her a dreamy star-struck smile "Wow Superwoman; that was incredible sugar."

Lois fell on his chest helpless with laughter "Su...Su...Superwoman."

"Uh huh; you might not be able to fly but you took me to the stars and beyond." Hearing her smothered giggles, he cracked up "Ok, that was too corny even for me."

When their laughter was down to light chuckles, they looked at each other and smiled. Lois lifted her hand and ran it through his unkempt hair "It's just as well that we're circumspect when your mom and Chloe are around."

"We don't have to be."

"Oh yes we do, look at us tonight. You'd barely walked in the door when..."

"When you attacked me" He supplied proudly "And did you notice that I didn't even attempt to fight you off?"

"Yeah I noticed." At the scratching on the door they looked at each other and began to chuckle once again "I'm surprised you remembered to close the door."

"I almost didn't, you already had my shirt off and my pants unzipped before I managed to retain a shred of common sense, and kicked it shut." He sat up on the side of the bed, stretched then walked into the bathroom for a quick shower, before coming back out to open the door "C'mon in Fred."

The dog trotted in, sat down beside the bed then moved his head back and forth between them. Lois reached over and ran her hand over his back soothingly "Sorry Freddy, I commandeered your buddy tonight huh?" He woofed and looked at Clark, she smiled and turned to find her guy was already dressed in jeans and t-shirt "He's gotten used to you playing with him when you arrive."

Clark came over to the bed, sat on the edge and leaning down took her lips in a deep long kiss "I had to play with my girl first." He whispered softly and after pressing a last soft kiss to her lips, stood and led the dog out of the room.

***

_Next Day_

After the work day was over, Clark flew towards Lois' house, wondering if he'd be lucky enough to get the same welcome that he'd gotten the day before.

He could be wrong, but was pretty sure that when he'd walked into the kitchen, he'd heard Lois snarl before she launched herself at him, and sealed her lips to his. He'd been more than happy to let her lead him to the bedroom with her mouth, while her fingers fumbled with his shirt buttons. They had almost made it to the bedroom doorway when she yelled 'Oh fuck this' grabbed both sides of his shirt tabs and ripped it open, sending buttons flying and pinging off the walls. He'd laughed, but instead of joining in, her lips and teeth got busy on his neck, while her busy little hands moved down to unbuckle his belt, and pull down the zipper of his pants. His laughter had swiftly changed to groans, when she dropped to her knees, pulled down the bottom half of his Superman suit and took him into her mouth.

His girlfriend was one hell of a woman; she was completely uninhibited, daringly sexual and altogether unselfish. It was only after she'd driven him over the edge, that she'd pushed him towards the bed, and tumbled him down before crawling on top. Her hands on him, her mouth, had been like glory. Their fingers kept tangling as they fumbled to get each other naked, and once done, he'd sat up, grasped her hips and impaled her hard onto him, revelling in her nails scoring down his back while her voice panted breathlessly in his ear 'now, now, now' all while he continued to drive and plunge deep inside her.

Their sex life had never been boring, they didn't always reach the apex, but just being together and making love was enough. However, when she'd all but feasted on him yesterday, he'd felt like crowing with the knowledge that she wanted him so badly. The two of them had been even more frantic than the first time they'd been together, and that was saying something. Lois was definitely Superwoman; she not only fulfilled every wet dream that he'd ever had, she also eclipsed every woman that he'd been with before her. His lips tilted in a lopsided smile; Lois Lane had the man of steel wrapped around her little finger in every way that was possible, and he'd never been happier.

"Help Superman, Helllllp!" The sound of a woman's voice crying out caught his attention. Shaking his head to dispel thoughts of Lois, he swerved away from the direction of her house and flew towards the scream.

Seeing the open window, Clark zoomed inside then came to stop. He looked around the lounge room but couldn't see anything to cause alarm, walked into the kitchen and found nothing there either, and began to wonder if he'd gotten the wrong apartment. He'd never gotten it wrong before, but had to admit that his concentration hadn't been total beforehand. Frowning lightly at his mistake; he turned around intending to quickly fly out the window before the owners found him and thought Superman was a huge pervert, but halted at the relief in the feminine voice issuing forth behind him.

"Superman, you're here."

He spun around, swept his eyes over the woman, but not finding anything amiss, his brow wrinkled "I'm sorry Miss, I didn't mean to intrude; I thought I heard a call for help."

"Oh you did, I called you." She walked forward and came to stop an inch in front of him.

The look in her eyes, and the way she was invading his personal space, made him uncomfortable "Are you alright?"

"Oh yes, now that you're here I'm just perfect." She replied, throwing her arms around him, and locking her lips to his.

"Mmm, um, mmm, Miss, mmmm." He put his hands on her shoulders and tried to push her off, but the damn woman was stuck to him like a limpet. He managed to wrench his lips free, but was unable to pull her arms from around his neck. The only way he could do that was with force, which was out of the question, but just as he got one of her arms loose, the other wrapped around him again. Finally giving up, he rubbed the bridge of his nose "Um, you can let go of me now."

"I don't ever wanna let you go."

"Miss, are you in trouble?"

"Oh Superman, I love you." She pressed her face hard into his chest and wiggled.

Clark's eyes grew wide; it was summer, it was still hot, so unless she was cold then he shouldn't be feeling what he could feel poking against his chest. He reached back to tug her arms from around his waist, and grit his teeth when the action pressed her breasts harder against him. He heard her gasp lightly, swore quietly in his head and in desperation took a step back, but instead of letting go, she just took a step forward and moved with him "Miss please."

"My names Penny..."

"Well Penny...."

"Say my name again." She asked, looking up at him adoringly.

"Miss!" Finally managing to tug her arms from around his waist, he hefted out a deep breath and asked patiently "Look, are you in trouble or not?"

"I'm in trouble of dying from pure happiness now that you're here." She rested her hands on his chest, and leant up to kiss him again.

He drew his head back "Well since you're ok...."

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Miss..."

"You said that you didn't a couple of months ago."

"Well I...."

"I don't believe all that rubbish the media say about you and Ms Lane; I mean it's obviously not true."

"I...."

"She is soooo not your type."

"She's not...?" He asked dumbfounded, then shook his head quickly "I mean; what..?"

"From the time I first saw you on the TV, I just knew that we were meant to be together Superman." She giggled softly "I have every single article that's been written about you, and I've taped heaps of stuff about you from the TV." She put her hand on her heart and looked at him with eyes full of love "I think you and I were always meant to have a deep psychic connection; a romantic one I mean." She trailed off and smiled prettily "I bet that only happens with very special couples on Krypton, and even though I'm a human, I've always been very sensitive and open to the universe."

Clark's mouth opened but no words came out; shaking himself out of the stupor he'd fallen into, he shook his head again "I have to be going."

She grabbed onto his arm "Now that we've met, don't you just know that I'm right; oh I'm sure you do." She supplied without giving him time to answer. She threw herself into his arms again, lifted up on her toes to kiss him but when he moved his head back again; made do with pressing her lips against his chin "Isn't it incredible that out of all the people in the world, we just happened to find each other."

"We didn't find each other, you called me." He pointed out, while trying to peel her off his chest.

"Well yes, but you came." She breathed out, snuggling deeper against him "Just think, for years and years our hearts were crying out to be together, but the universe was keeping us apart; that's just tragic don't you think?" Without giving him time to answer, she lifted her head and smiled up at him "But fate brought you all the way from Krypton just to find me. You could have gone to any other planet, but you came here for me. Don't you just feel that I'm right?"

"I have to be going." Clark repeated stoutly, and felt profoundly grateful when she finally let him go.

"I made you this." She turned to the bench, picked up a cake tin and handed it over shyly "I wasn't sure if you liked chocolate or not, but most people do so I thought that I'd give it a try and see." She paused and smiled at him sweetly "I hope that you like it."

"Miss..." At the hurt look on her face, he corrected "Penny; it's not that I'm not appreciative but..."

"Don't you like me?"

"You seem to be a real nice girl but..."

"I am Superman and I'll be the best girlfriend you could ever imagine. I won't be upset when you have to go out and save people, and I won't yell at you in front of a bunch of people like Ms Lane did."

"Ms Lane was annoyed because..." He trailed off and shook his head "It doesn't matter."

When she thrust the cake tin into his hands, he took it knowing that if he didn't, the stupid thing would end up on the kitchen floor. He didn't want to crush the girl's feelings, she was no older than 21 or 22, but he really, really wanted to get out of there "Penny..."

"I just love your voice, it's so firm and masculine but tender, and when you say my name, it sends shivers down my spine." She quivered deliciously.

"Pe...Miss you don't know me and...."

"Yes I do." She countered resolutely "You're so wonderful and brave, you're gorgeous and caring; you're sweet and nice. Oh, I can't wait to tell my friends that I've met and kissed you; they're just gonna die." She squealed happily.

Clark gulped and took a step back, she took a step forward "I was thinking that if you're free tonight we could go out to dinner..." When his head shook back and forth, she nodded "Of course, you probably can't make plans since you don't know when you're going to be needed, and we can't go out because then we'll never have any privacy." She frowned for a beat then her face brightened "Well then why don't I make us a nice dinner here, and if you have to leave then you don't have to worry about how I'll get home, and I'll tell my roomies they have to make themselves scarce tonight, so we won't be interrupted. I'm looking forward to learning all about Krypton, and I'll teach you all about the customs we have here on Earth."

"Miss I really have to go." He repeated and gently shook his arm until she finally let go. He turned towards the window, saw freedom was in sight, and stepped forward, but stopped at the tugging on his cape. He turned back to find that she'd grabbed hold of it, and sighing deeply, tugged her hand loose "Penny..."

"Oh I just love the sound of my name on your lips, I've dreamt of you saying my name just that way when we make lo..."

Clark looked around wildly "I can hear someone calling for help..." He began to float up, and stopped at her next words.

"What time should I expect you for dinner?" She asked eagerly.

"I can't, I'm busy...I've gotta go." With a burst of super-speed he flew away as if the hounds of hell were on his heels. It wasn't until he was halfway to Lois' house, when he realised that he was still holding the cake tin.

Coming to an abrupt halt, he dazedly shook his head "Holy Shit!" Scrubbing his free hand over his face, he shook his head again, wondering what in the hell was going on with the women in the world. This was the fifth time in two weeks that he'd responded to a call for help, only to find some woman just waiting for the chance to throw themselves at him. Instead of getting easier, it was getting more and more uncomfortable, and Penny was by far the worst.

He hadn't told Lois about the women and didn't want to do so now. He was a grown man who'd been around the block more than once, so women looking at him like a piece of meat, although uncomfortable in itself, shouldn't be a problem; yet it was. He enjoyed it when Lois came onto him, hell he encouraged her to do so, but she was different. Blowing out a deep shaky breath, he flew onward until he came to Lois' house.

X-raying down, he saw that Fred was playing in the backyard, Lois was sitting on the couch in the family area off the kitchen relaxing, and the back door was open. He could go home for a little while, but didn't want to. This was virtually his home now, this was where his girl was and this was where he wanted to be. If he could zoom past her really fast, she might not even notice that he was there yet. Figuring it was worth a shot; he flew through the door, straight to the bedroom and sat down heavily on the edge of the bed.

Seeing the blur fly straight through the kitchen, Lois pushed up from the couch and followed, concerned that something was wrong "Clark...." She stepped into the room, sniffed the air, looked at him and lifted her brows "Do you have something to tell me?"

"What?"

"Don't play innocent. Firstly, you smell like a brothel, and secondly, you have lipstick on your mouth, chin and neck. In the first place, I wouldn't be caught dead wearing that cheap perfume, and in the second, that is not my shade of lipstick." She crossed her arms, tapped her foot and waited.

He wiped his hand over his mouth and grimaced, sped into the bathroom, had a quick shower then stepped back into the bedroom a minute later, with a towel wrapped around his waist. Turning his head, he sniffed at his shoulder and relaxed. However, when he saw Lois standing with her arms crossed, brows lifted and her foot tapping, the relaxed feeling vanished.

"It wasn't my fault."

"Really, so what; you tripped and your mouth just happened to land smack dab on another woman's, while she was bathing in a vat of dime store perfume?" She asked politely.

"Lois, I swear I didn't do anything."

"Then where did the perfume and lipstick come from?"

"This woman kissed me." He sat down on the edge of the bed, and tugged her down onto his lap. Keeping up the momentum, he pushed her down gently, threw his arm over her waist to keep her stationery and pressed his lips to her cheek before lifting his head "Babe, I didn't do anything." When he saw the laughter deep in her eyes, he let out a huge sigh of relief "You little witch, I thought you were pissed at me."

"And what makes you think that I'm not?" She asked trying to keep a straight face.

"Lois!" Clark groused.

She gave in and smiled "Oh cool your jets, so what happened?"

"Some woman called for help and when I got to her place she threw herself at me." When she began to giggle, he gave her an affronted look "It's not funny, she said that when she first saw Superman, that she just knew we belonged together and...Lois." He growled impatiently.

She threw back her head and laughed "Talk about getting your comeuppance." At the puzzled expression on his face "She sounds just like you did about Lana."

His face contorted "Oh my god, you're right." He flopped down at her side then smiled in relief a moment later "But I figured out that I was talking a lot of crap, so she will too."

"Uh huh, and how many years did it take you figure that out?" She leant up and asked innocently. When his eyes grew wide, her lips twitched "I bet she has pictures of you that she stares at all day long."

"Lois!" He growled once again.

"I wonder if she'll become your groupie the way you were Lana's." She rolled her eyes in his direction and at the sour cast to his face, purposely continued taunting him "I bet she imagines the two of you; you know." At the flush on his face, she screamed and fell back on the bed laughing "She does?"

"She said..."

"Oh I bet she did."

"It's not funny."

"Yes it is." At the miffed look on his face, she sobered "I'm sorry, you're right it's not funny."

"Thank you.

"What's this?" Lois asked, poking the tin gently with her finger.

At that the question the pent up words burst out of his throat. He sat up, pointed shakily at the cake tin before waving his hands crazily in the air "It's a cake she made for me, and she said that she was going to cook us dinner, and that she wants to be my girlfriend and her friends are gonna die when she tells them that she kissed me and ...."

"Clark, take a breath." Lois told him gently, rubbing his back "Now how old was she?"

"About 22." He whispered wretchedly.

"22! Clark, what on earth has got you all worked up? So a girl likes you, what's the big deal?" Lois asked perplexed.

"But it's not just her Lo, this is the fifth time in two weeks that some woman has called for Superman and when I've gotten there, they didn't want help at all."

She wanted to laugh but could see that the poor man was almost beside himself, so kept her expression poker straight "Why didn't you tell me what's been going on?"

"I didn't want you to worry."

"Worry about what?"

He shrugged uncomfortably but refused to meet her eyes.

"You thought I'd be jealous by a bunch of groupies?" Lois asked astonished.

"No of course no...yeah." He blew out a deep breath "Well not jealous really, but I didn't want you to worry that I was going to be tempted by the offers that are coming my way."

She rolled her eyes lightly "Ok, so give me a run down on what you've had to deal with the last couple of weeks."

She listened quietly as he told her about each incident, nodded gravely, and kept her enjoyment of his discomfiture hidden. However, when he began to talk about Penny; Lois quickly lifted a hand in front of her mouth, pretending to chew a fingernail. She kept her expression neutral, but when he finally ran down, she excused herself, ran to the bathroom, slammed the door and began to scream with laughter. Once she felt calmer, she came back out to find Clark had dressed, and was sitting on the bed looking in her direction with no hint of amusement on his face.

Lois coughed, sat beside him and patted his hand "Well it sounds like you've had an interesting couple of weeks but I wouldn't worry about it. Penny sounds a little more over the top than the others, but she'll get over it soon enough."

"She thinks we share a deep psychic connection Lo."

"A deep what?" She asked dumbfounded.

"Psychic connection." He mumbled, dropping his head embarrassed.

Lois bit her lip, cleared her throat and swallowed back the laughter that once again crowded into her chest "Did you tell her that you can't have one with her, because your minds burnt out from trying to find any kind of connection with your ex-wife?"

He scowled at her from under lowered brows "Ha, ha; it's not funny Lois."

She cleared her throat once again "Clark, she'll get over it."

"But what if she calls me again? I can't ignore her in case she really is in trouble, but she didn't even let me finish a sentence, and I didn't know what to say back so I just...." He paused and waved his hand, at her confusion "I said that I had an emergency and flew away."

"She's just a girl with a crush."

"She scares me." He garbled inarticulately.

"She scares you?" Lois asked surprised.

"She's an octopus Lo, and she looks at me with big shining eyes, and says that I travelled all the way from Krypton just to meet her and..." When Lois' mouth opened, he held up a hand "I was not so much of an ass that I thought that about Lana."

Lois pursed her lips, nodded lightly and let out a deep heartfelt sigh "Well I guess we'd better break up then. It's been fun, but I don't go out with men who are off the market."

"What'd you mean?"

"Well if this woman is as persistent as you were, and if you decide to take the role of ultimate tease that Lana played previously, then while Penny drives everyone to madness about how the two of you are destined, you'll happily lead her around by the nose for sport while coming onto her. However, one day you'll see the light, realise that she was right along, and the two of you do share some kind of esoteric bond." She smiled at him nicely and patted his thigh companionably "One, I have no intention of living through that again, and two, it also means that you're effectively taken. So I'll just go and get some boxes for your stuff, and tell Fred that he'd better look for a new best friend."

He tugged and rolled her under him "One, I'm off the market to any woman but you, two, I don't care what plans she has, I'm not interested, and three, don't bother getting any boxes because I'm not going anywhere." Bending down he sealed his lips to hers, cupping her face in his hands to deepen the kiss. After several minutes, his head lifted, his eyes opened and smiled into hers "Nice try babe, but you're not getting rid of me that easily."

She clicked her fingers together "Damn and I was so close too."

"You were nowhere near close." He corrected, before sitting them both up, and letting out a huge sigh "I don't get what the big deal is about Superman, what on earth makes the women all hot and bothered about him."

"What got you all hot and bothered about Lana?" Lois asked conversationally "I concede that she was pretty, but she didn't corner the market on good looks. Nor did she have any gifts or accomplishments that made her stand out from the rest of the crowd; yet you were ga ga about her."

"Yeah but..."

"But nothing; of all people you should understand better than most, that just because you're attracted to someone, doesn't mean that they're the love of your life, nor that you're destined to be with them forever. Sometimes you see or meet someone and you're just attracted; end of story. There doesn't have to be a reason or an explanation for it, you might not understand it or even want it; you just are." She finished pointedly.

He nodded in agreement "Yeah, I've learnt that."

"We've all learnt that in different ways." She smiled ruefully and patted his arm in solidarity "Attraction fades, so it'll blow over. Superman's still fairly new, but once the women of the world get used to him being around they'll calm down."

"You think?" He asked hopefully.

"Yeah, more than likely these women are lonely. Some of them are just young, others could have had a few bad relationships, or just haven't met anyone that's rung their particular bell, so when Superman came along like some kind of white knight, they fell for him the way people do for celebrities."

"But I'm not a celebrity."

"I know, but unlike celebrities who are a breed all on their own, Superman's someone people can identify with, because he doesn't hold himself apart from the common man." She shrugged casually "As for Penny, give her a couple of weeks to meet some cute guy in a nightclub or somewhere else, and she'll think that she's found a new psychic beau."

He nodded and raked a hand through his hair "Well I'll be glad when women stop calling for help just to ask me out."

She patted his back and stood "Think of it this way, you did all the running after Lana, so now you should just enjoy being the pin-up for hundreds of women."

He stood, grabbed her arm and gently tugged her back into his arms "I'm only interested in being chased by you."

"That's not gonna happen." She replied promptly.

"Then I'll settle for being your pin-up."

"Nope."

"Will you be my groupie?"

She fake yawned.

"Shit Lo, give me something."

She smiled at him nicely, and leant forward to press her lips to his "It's Friday night, so you have to take out the garbage."

"Thanks babe; at least I'm not in danger of getting a big head with you around."

"Happy to help" She took a step towards the door then spun around "Before I forget, Fred's been busy in the backyard, so before you take the bin out, you might wanna grab the spade, a plastic bag and clean up after him."

"And what'll you be doing?" He asked politely.

"I'm busy with other stuff." She retorted loftily then hurried out the door before he could question her further.

He snorted out a laugh, and after grabbing the cake tin, followed her from the room.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

_Eleven Days Later_

When Clark got back to the Planet he was surprised to find an email from Lois that had been sent less than 30 minutes previously. He read the missive and his heart sank. It was just a brief note saying that she'd see him on the weekend, but he understood the tacit message. She didn't want him in Seattle that night. However, since she didn't want to take the chance that anyone could read her email inadvertently; she'd referred to the weekend instead.

His brow furrowed in concern. She could be tired; Lois had been in Dallas for two days hoping to get the last of interviews out of the way, before she could begin compiling all her notes to write her book. When she'd told him that she was going away for a few days, he'd whined that last time she'd been away for three weeks. She'd laughed in return and told him that this time it was only going to be for two days; three max, then promised to make it up to him when she returned.

Well either she was home and didn't want him there, or she was still in Dallas and would be so until the weekend. If she was at home then he had to surmise that she was upset. He'd told Lois, if there was ever a night when she didn't want him to come, to let him know. So logically he knew that he should respect her wishes, but emotionally he couldn't. If she was stuck in Dallas her message would have said that, which meant that she was at home. However, she hadn't asked him to call her back so that she could tell him why she didn't want him to come. If she had he would have understood, but this was different. Lois was letting him know that he wasn't welcome without telling him why; and the only reason she would do that, was because she was upset.

Unlike the previous time she'd been away, this time their communication system had broken down. In the two days that she was gone, they'd played phone tag; leaving each other messages but never managing to catch each other at the same time. Her voice had sounded fine when he'd played his messages last night, so whatever had upset her, had to have happened today; either before she'd left Dallas or since her return.

His mind raced trying to figure out what could possibly be wrong, and the only thing he could surmise, was that the women who continued to throw themselves at Superman had gotten to her. In the two weeks since the Penny incident there had been others, and he'd told Lois about all of them. Just last weekend they'd been strolling around Seattle, enjoying the nice warm weather and each other's company, when the sounds of commotion and screams caught his attention. He'd left Lois behind, and returned a few seconds later as Superman to stop a huge billboard from crashing down to the pavement below. He'd moved the sign out of harms way, had waved at the work crews who'd called out thanks, and had been on the point of flying off when a woman threw herself against his chest. He'd just managed to peel her off, when another took her place. By the time he'd gotten back to Lois, she'd been sitting on a park bench, eating an ice cream. He'd sat down beside her, she looked at him then reached into her purse, pulled out a couple of tissues, and handed them over. At his lifted brows, she'd tapped her lips and his face but otherwise made no comment.

She hadn't seemed to be upset by the incident, but now he couldn't help worrying if she was feeling a little jealous and insecure, or if she was just becoming tired of the whole situation, and thinking that being involved with him was more of a headache than it was worth.

If it wasn't that then he didn't know. If he'd forgotten something then he wanted to know what, if she was pissed off with him then he wanted to know why, and if she was trying to push him away, then he wasn't going to let her.

Clark looked at the time, noted that he still had at least another hour before he could leave work respectably, looked around the newsroom and knew that it was useless. He'd never be able to concentrate until he found out what was wrong.

He sedately pushed back his chair, walked in the direction of the storage room and once clear of seeing eyes raced to the roof and took off. Several minutes later he came to a stop above her house and x-rayed down to find Lois gardening, while Fred played tug of war with the toy she'd brought him. If it wasn't for the wretchedness on her face, the picture the two of them presented would have been sweet, but he could see that she looked to be a combination of angry, sad and miserable.

Tuning his hearing in, he didn't hear anything except for the light soothing sound of music and the dog growling while tugging on the rubber rope. However, a few minutes later, Lois threw the trowel down, sat on the grass and turned to the dog "Hey Freddy, how about we go to the mountains for a week or two. I can rent the cabin we stayed in last year and it'll be fun. Just you and me, what'd you think?"

The dog let go of the toy he'd been pulling on and trotted over to sit at her side. Lois leant over to ruffle his fur then buried her face in his neck "It's almost the end of summer so the timings just right, and we had fun last year, didn't we boy?" Clark heard the shakiness in her voice, and the hitching of her breath before she swore quietly, and pushed herself up to stalk around the back yard.

Fred followed her around the yard, and when she came to a stop, he sat beside her once again. Lois kicked at the grass, dropped her head, pinched the bridge of her nose, then turned to the mutt and bending down kissed his nose "I'm ok Fred, why don't you go and play with your toy again." The dog licked her cheek, woofed and ran back to the tree to once again tug on the rubber spring rope.

She smiled glumly at the mutt, before turning and walking into the house. He didn't need to see or hear anymore, she was upset and that was enough. Clark zipped down, stepped inside the house then slid the door closed at his back.

Lois looked up from the contents of the fridge, saw him, turned back to pull out the bottle of wine she'd been reaching for, and poured herself a glass "What are you doing here?"

Her voice wasn't welcoming, but he wasn't leaving "I thought that I'd come over to see if you've changed your mind."

"I haven't, so …." She waved her hand at the back door before turning to put the bottle back in the fridge.

"Lois."

"Clark I don't want company ok?"

"I didn't think I was company."

"Well you thought wrong." She sipped the wine and raked a hand through her hair "Look if you came over for sex then I suggest you track down one of your groupies, because I'm not in the mood."

"I don't want sex; I wanna know what's wrong." He replied quietly.

"What's wrong is that I told you not to come, yet here you are." She stalked from behind the island and sat down on the couch.

He pushed aside the hurt of her words, sat down beside her, and ignored the flare of anger in her eyes at his presence; taking note instead of both the unsteadiness of her hand holding the glass, and the slight wobbling of her chin.

"Have I done something Lo?"

She ignored him.

"Babe, are you angry with me for some reason?"

"No."

"Then what's wrong?"

"I already told you what's wrong but you didn't listen." She took in a deep unsteady breath, held it for a moment before turning to him. When she next spoke, he could tell that she was trying to be serene, but the tiredness and anger in her tone was unmistakeable "I suppose it's just as well that you came by anyway."

"Why?" He asked softly.

"Because I'm thinking of going away for a little while, so you might wanna take your things before you leave, or I can have Eva pack everything up and send it to you." She turned to look out the screen door once again, effectively dismissing him. He was wrong, it hadn't only been anger and tiredness that he'd heard in her voice, but wretched misery as well.

"Where are you going?"

"To the mountains, Fred loves it there and..."

"I can fly out and join you after work."

"No."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want you too ok?" She sighed heavily "Look Clark, Superman's quite the hot ticket item right now, so you should get out there and make the most of it."

"Is it the women; are you upset about that?" He reached over to pick up her hand, but she casually pulled it away "Lois, I don't encourage them."

She didn't answer.

"What's wrong?" He asked gently.

"Nothing's wrong; now will you please just leave." She pushed off the couch, stalked to the back door, and walked outside.

He followed, reached out to touch her arm but she stepped away from him. Sighing deeply, he pressed a kiss against the back of her head "Bye Lo."

She nodded minutely, he zipped upwards and came to a stop high enough away that if she tried to see him, she wouldn't be able to. However, she didn't try, just continued to lean against the gazebo entrance staring at the garden. Less than a minute later, she lifted the glass to take a sip of wine, but instead turned and threw it against the side of the house with all her might, before collapsing onto the ground in tears.

He zipped back down, grabbed her close and let her cry. She tried to fight, tried to push him away. In return he held her tighter, pressed her face into his neck but wouldn't let go, determined to wait out her struggles. Less than a moment later Fred was at their side, whining at his mistress's distress. Keeping Lois clamped to his chest with one arm, Clark reached out to run his other hand over the animals back, trying to calm the dog's agitation, and let out a silent sigh of relief when Lois wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed harder. He hated to see her like this, but it was preferable to the stone face she'd been wearing before, that had the clear message 'keep out'.

When she finally grew quiet, he picked her up, carried her into the house and straight to the bedroom with Fred hard on his heels. He sat down on the edge of the bed with Lois curled in his lap, toed his shoes of, said a few words to Fred and smiled when the animal curled up at the doorway. Keeping Lois in his arms, he lay down and closed his eyes when she wrapped herself around him, instead of trying to move away now that the storm of tears had passed.

He smoothed one hand over her hair, the other over her back "What's wrong baby?"

She continued to tremble but instead of answering just shook her head and pressed her face harder into his neck. It was a good 15 minutes before she calmed, but when she tried to move off him to reach for the tissues, he simply floated them closer to the edge so that she could grab the box before floating them back down again.

Lois wiped her eyes, blew her nose then lifted her face to his "What I said earlier about you just coming over for sex...I didn't mean it Clark. I was bitchy and you didn't deserve it; I'm sorry."

"It's ok Lo." Clark replied softly, but she shook her head in return "No, it's not ok, I'm sorry for saying it."

"I know babe." He brushed the hair away from her brow and searched her face "Are you feeling better?"

She nodded, then shook her head before lifting one shoulder wearily "Yes, no; I don't know."

"Can you tell me what's wrong?"

"I interviewed the bastard that's in my next book, and he; god..." She shook her head "Some people kill for money, for love or hate, for any number of reasons you know." He nodded silently "Well this asshole killed because he enjoyed it. He enjoyed the fear his victims felt, he went into detail about how he got off on what he did, the terror they felt knowing their lives were in his hands." She scrubbed her hands over her eyes "I've interviewed a lot of people, some who were just plain evil and made me sick to my stomach, but this guy..."

He rubbed his hands over her back soothingly "He was in a class by himself."

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you tell me that you were going to interview him Lo?"

She shrugged half-heartedly, before sighing and sitting up "I knew that you'd worry, and it's my job. It doesn't always get to me this bad, but this guy made me sick and angry. He killed seven people for pleasure before he was caught. Seven people; and they didn't do anything except make the mistake of catching his eye. His victims weren't of a type which was why he evaded capture for so long; there was an elderly couple, a woman in her 30's, a teenage boy, and a few others. If he hadn't been caught, he'd still be out there taking lives just because he could."

He sat up, wrapped his arms around her from behind, and pressed his lips to the back of her neck "I don't know what to say."

"There's nothing to say." She turned around and smiled sadly "This is a hard one, but I have to write it; even more so now that I've met him. When I read the police reports, when I spoke to the victim's families, it was hard, but this...."

He nodded silently.

She raked a hand through her hair, before letting it fall to lie idly in her lap "You should be at work."

"I've finished for the day."

"It's only just after 1.30 here, so it's only just after 4.30 in Metropolis, which means that your workday's not quite over."

"Yes it is, I handed in a story just before lunch, went out on a Superman call and had just gotten back to the Planet when I saw your message and left." When her mouth opened he held up a hand "I'll quickly write up the Superman story, email it to Perry and he'll be happy."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to leave work or worry, I just didn't wanna see anyone." She rubbed her brow, and blew out a soft breath "I feel really icky, so I'm going to hop in the shower."

He bobbed his head "I'll write the story, email it to Perry and then join you, alright?"

Fred came into the room, sniffed at Lois' leg and laid a paw on her knee "Hi Freddy." She ruffled his fur, bent over to give him a big hug, and smiled when he licked her chin, before stretching and retreating to the bathroom.

Clark raced outside, and after cleaning up the glass, let the dog back outside then closed the door and made his way to Lois' office. Within 5 minutes the story was written, and he was stepping into the shower behind her. He picked up the shower puff, squeezed out a generous portion of body wash, gently soaped and rinsed her off, finished his own ablutions swiftly, then twisted off the taps before stepping out of the stall. Grabbing a towel he wiped Lois down, wrapped her in it, grabbed another to wipe himself impatiently then threw it carelessly back onto the rail before slipping an arm around her waist and leading her back into the bedroom.

Reaching up, he removed the clip Lois had used to pin her hair up, and after removing her towel, crawled into bed snuggling the duvet around them. He lay on his back, with her lying half on his chest while his hand gently smoothed up and down her thigh, over her hip and waist then back again.

When she slipped into sleep, he turned his head and traced his eyes over her face. He'd wondered how she wrote the stuff that she did, and still stay sane, but now he knew there were times when it all became too much for her. He didn't know how she'd coped before, maybe she turned to her friends, she must have confided in her ex-husband when she was married, but now he wanted her to turn to him; maybe after this she would.

This was the first time since they'd been together that Lois had really let him in. When she'd made it clear that she didn't want him around, then further tried to push him away making it palpable that she didn't want comfort from him, it had hurt like hell. Hopefully after this, she'd find it easier to turn to him, and the time after that, and the time after that, until one day she turned to him without hesitation.

30 minutes later, Lois lashes fluttered up, their eyes met, and leaning forward she pressed her lips softly to his. They made love gently, slowly, light touches, and whisper caresses. Mouths stayed locked, tongues tangled and twined, slowly, languorously; lips parted and came back together. They rolled over the bed until he was on top, then she was, then he again; soft feminine curves gliding against harder masculine ones. Pushing his knee gently between her legs, he shifted to lie in the cradle of her thighs, slid his hands down to clasp her hips, and lifted his lips from hers "Open your eyes babe." Her lashes fluttered up, and pressing forward he slid inside her smooth as butter.

Withdrawing almost completely, he swirled his hips to stimulate and titillate the soft inner flesh of her sex with the tip of his penis, before pressing inwards again. One arm slipped under her back, until his hand sat open palmed between her shoulder blades, his other hand slid down to sit high on the thigh clasping his hip, while he continued to move in and out of her channel in the same even tempered leisurely tempo.

When her lashes began to flutter down, he whispered "Keep looking at me Lois, please babe keep your eyes open and on mine."

The weight of her lashes felt unbearably heavy, the lovemaking so decadently lazy that she felt like she was drowning in sensation. Looking into his eyes, Lois felt herself get lost, and wondered if she'd ever be the same again.

Keeping his eyes steady on hers, Clark hoped that Lois would begin to see just how much he loved her. No matter what they did, no matter how they did it; this was always love. It wasn't sex, it wasn't a quick romp to take off the edge, nor it wasn't just a good time between the sheets, it was love and he wanted her to start seeing it for what it was; lovemaking.

When it was over, he rolled onto his back, clasped her to his chest and pressed a kiss to the crown of her head "Lois..." She tilted her head up "You can be angry, you can yell, storm and rage at me if it'll help; but please don't try and push me away again." He brought her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss against the tips of her fingers "I can handle anything, but not that ok?"

She smoothed her hand over his chest and looked down, but when he tipped her chin up and captured her eyes with his, she smiled apologetically "I'm sorry."

"I don't want you to be sorry Lo, I want you to promise that you won't ever try and keep me out again."

She raked a hand through her hair and exhaled heavily "I'm not comfortable opening up..." She trailed off helplessly, and shrugged.

"I know you're not and I know it's not easy, but I wanna be there for you Lo, and I can't be if you shut me out." He smoothly rolled her under him, brushed the hair away from her brow and cupped her face "I don't want our relationship to only consist of fun and sex; I want you to need me Lois, as much as I need you."

"I don't want to need anyone."

"I'm not talking about anyone Lo, just me; I want you to need _me_."

She licked her lips nervously, hesitated and confessed softly "I do, and that scares me."

"That's why you tried to push me away?" He clarified softly.

She nodded lightly "Yeah, I...."

"Promise me that you won't do it again Lo. I can take most anything, but when I saw your message telling me not to come I was worried, when I arrived and you told me that you were going away I was scared, when you said that you didn't want me to join you I was terrified, but when you told me to leave....god babe, I knew that you were trying to kick me out of your life, and my heart just about stopped."

"It didn't show." She replied softly, lifting her finger to trace his lips.

"If you'd looked you would have seen it, but you were too stewed up at the time."

"I was." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hugged him hard "I promise not to do that again."

He hugged her back and closed his eyes tight. They'd weathered this storm and come through it. He hadn't said it in so many words, but Lois now knew that he wasn't going to leave, nor was she going to drive him away. She now understood that she could count on him, and more, that he wanted her to. If this hadn't happened, he didn't know how much longer it would have taken before she realised it, but now that she had, it felt like a real turning point in their relationship had been reached at last.

***

In the late hours of the night Lois slipped out of bed quietly, pulled on her robe, and padded into the kitchen. Even though she knew her house well enough to navigate in the dark, the moonlight spilling though the window offered ample light. She reached over to pull open the mini blinds on the sliding door, hesitated and let her hand fall. She didn't want brilliance; the amount of light shining through the big window over the sink was more than enough.

She had just finished pouring herself a glass of orange juice, when masculine arms slipped around her waist, and pulled her back gently against a strong broad chest.

"Are you ok?" Clark asked softly.

"Yeah, I'm ok." She looked out the kitchen window, saw the backyard was bathed in moonlight and rested her head against his chest "Do you want some juice?"

"No thanks." He bent down, brushed his lips across her ear "The next time you have to interview someone, will you tell me?"

"I told you when I went to Dallas."

"Was that research, or did you talk to people?"

"A bit of both, I interviewed the victims' families, read police files and the like. It wasn't easy but I was away for longer, so I had time to deal with how I felt before I saw you again." She confessed quietly.

He nodded, turned her around and tilted her chin up "You didn't tell me who you were going to interview in Dallas and I didn't even think to ask, but I wanna know Lo, I need to. And now that I know you were hiding how you felt the times we talked when you were in Dallas previously, I don't want you to do that again. I don't want you to pretend with me babe, with everyone else you can wear whatever social mask you need to to get through, but not with me."

She kept her eye son his for a moment longer, before letting out a soft breath "Ok."

"Thank you."

Her hands stroked over his arms "I was ok in Dallas the last time Clark, it wasn't easy but for the most part I was alright. I've been doing this for 10 years, and just like cops and doctors learn to put aside their personal feelings to get the job done, I've become...hardened I guess to what I'm going to hear or read, but this time it just hit me really hard y'know?"

He lifted one hand, and brushed her cheek gently "You're not hard Lois, if you were, what that man said today wouldn't have broken you. Just as doctors, cops and the like become conditioned to put everything aside and get the job done, well so have you." He slipped his arms around her waist again, and hugged her tight "That doesn't make you hard baby, it makes you a strong person who's learnt to look beyond herself, and what horrifies her, to do what she has to in the pursuit of helping others."

She rubbed her cheek against his shoulder "Who am I helping by writing this stuff."

He pulled back and cupped her face in his hands "If you didn't write this stuff Lo people wouldn't know about it, and they need to. All those people who suffered and died deserve to be remembered Lo, and they deserve the vindication of others knowing that they didn't do anything, to merit dying the way they did. Remember what you said when we were at Chloe's that first night?" She nodded uncertainly "You said that the families of the victims sometimes want to talk about the person they've lost, they want to share how their lives have been affected by what happened. They want to speak out because sometimes just having the person caught and behind bars isn't enough. Well this case you're writing about sounds like a prime example of that."

"Yeah" Lifting up on her toes, she pressed her lips softly to his.

He smoothed his hand down her hair, and rubbed her back gently "Come back to bed."

She patted his arm and turned back to the window "I'll be there soon; I just want to stay here for a while."

Clark zipped over to the stereo, switched it on, turned the volume down and smiled at the dreamy romantic song that issued from the speakers. Racing back to Lois, he snugged his arms around her waist from behind, and rocked her gently to the music.

She looked over her shoulder at him, lifted her arm and ran the tips of her fingers over the nape of his neck "You should go back to bed; you have to leave for work in a few hours whereas I can sleep in."

"I don't need anywhere near as much sleep as most people do, so I'm good." He replied quietly.

At the opening bars of the next song, he turned her around, and raked his fingers into the sides of her hair, giving him a clear unobstructed view of her face "Can I ask you something?"

She nodded silently.

"Are you getting angry or fed up with women throwing themselves at me?" When her mouth opened, he shook his head "Not jealous Lo, just tired of it all. I don't blame you, but..."

She lifted her hand and pressed a finger against his lips "No, it's human nature for people; men and women to be attracted to those who are larger than life. So no, it doesn't bother me."

He kept his eyes straight on hers "Lois I don't ever want you to worry that I'm going to fool around behind your back. My pants will stay zipped around other women, I promise you that."

"I know." She smiled and shook her head "I don't sit here wondering if you're making time with a groupie, or will be in the future. We agreed to be honest if we wanna see someone else, so I know that if you did, you'd tell me first."

"I won't be tempted babe; I'm just not interested in anyone else."

She shook her head lightly "Clark you wouldn't be normal if you didn't notice beautiful women, I notice attractive men. There's nothing wrong with looking, it's touching that's out."

He nodded in agreement "I know and yeah I do appreciate a beautiful woman as much as the next man, but I admire from a distance and only look using normal vision. I only want one groupie in my bed and in my life, and that's you."

Her lips twitched "I'm not a groupie remember?"

Seeing the light in her eyes, the twitching lips and the softness in her face; he knew that she was feeling better than she had earlier. Feeling pleased that she'd found a measure of peace, and wanting to keep the atmosphere light, he replied in a like vein.

"In my head you are." He retorted playfully "Remember when I arrived after work a couple of weeks ago and you ravished me?" She nodded and grinned "Well I've replayed that afternoon many times in my head, and the scenario I like to imagine best is that I was flying past minding my own business when I heard a call for help. So I arrived in the form of Superman, and saved you. You were of course blinded by my aura of manly manliness...."

"Your manly manliness." She cut in with a soft giggle.

"Hush woman; in the aura of my overwhelming manliness..."

"Now it's overwhelming manliness." She cut in again.

His voice became louder "In the irresistible aura of my devastating heroism, and you turned into a mad fan who just wanted to be close to me. So I tumbled you down..."

"I tumbled you." She corrected with a light chortle.

He kept going ignoring her rude interruptions "And after I took you to unexpected heights of ecstasy..." He glowered at her snort of laughter "You begged me to come back again and again and again."

"Just how many fantasy versions do you have of that afternoon?" She asked fascinated.

"I lost count after thirty five."

"Thirty five?!" Lois asked astonished, he nodded and beamed a grin in return "Let me get this straight; you have more than thirty five fantasies of me as some kind of insane devotee, who finds new ways to ravish you?"

"No, no, no." He shook his head, rolled his eyes and patiently began to explain "Sometimes you ravish me, other times you beg me to ravish you. You throw yourself into my arms and cry 'oh Superman, from the moment you saved my life so courageously I've wanted you. Take me; take me now!'" Lois lifted her hand to her mouth, sternly suppressing the laugh that wanted to pop out "There's also the one where you call out for help, and when I arrive you're in the tub wearing only a few bubbles that are rapidly popping; then ..."

"Why would I call you if I'm in the tub?" She interrupted to ask in a choked voice.

"Your toe was stuck in the faucet, so..."

"My toe was stuck in the faucet and you find that romantic." She fell back against the sink shrieking with laughter.

"It's romantic when I say 'Don't worry Ms Lane, Superman's here; he'll make it all better'. But when I lift you out of the tub my suit gets all wet, so you stroke my chest and say 'oh Superman, your suit, why don't you take it off and I'll dry it for you'...." his voice trailed off, his lips lifted in a dreamy smile. Lois looked at him, noted that he was in a world of his own and shook her head incredulous.

Clark came out of his dream world abruptly when a soft feminie body plastered itself against his chest. Lois looked up at him starry eyed and in a breathy voice cried "Oh Superman, from the moment you saved my life so courageously I've wanted you. Take me; take me now!"

He smiled kindly, pushed her away and shook his head sadly "I don't think I should Ms Lane, what about your boyfriend."

Lois hurled herself at him again and pleaded "Oh screw him, he's in Metropolis and we're here...alone." She pointed towards the window then looked back at him longingly "LeAnn said that you can't fight the moonlight, and she's right; so take me you manly man."

He swallowed back the laughter, clasped her to his chest with one arm, tilted her chin up with his free hand, and lifted a brow meaningfully "Yes the moonlight is hard to resist, its making us behave like beasts."

Choking back the giggle that threatened to break out, Lois continued to hold onto him with one arm, and lifted the back of her free hand against her forehead dramatically "Oh I know, I know but I don't care." She clutched onto his arms with both hands "You know this is bigger than both of us; so give in, slake your desires, quench my craving and take me NOW!" She finished pressing her face into his chest.

Clark let out a little squeak.

When Lois looked up, he noted that her eyes were glassy with tears, and her teeth were sunk into her bottom lip. Unable to resist, he cleared his throat, and in a deep husky voice replied "Don't bite your lip Miss Lane…." and sending her a hot sexy look, tacked on "….let me bite it for you."

Lois opened her mouth but instead of answering, quickly swung around to gather her composure before turning back "Why Superman, that...that just makes me want you even more. I want you to be bad for me and to hell with everything."

He nodded and swung her up into his arms "Then come my little moonflower, let us go and make beautiful music together." Lois buried her face in his neck and screeched; Clark staggered around the kitchen island, but gave up the fight and fell with her onto the couch roaring with laughter.

At the woof they both looked up to see Fred cocking his head at them, and reached out simultaneously to pat the mutt, while little chuckles continued to fall from their lips. After several minutes the dog had enough of their ministrations and trotted back to his doggy bed.

Lois swiped her hand over her cheeks wiping away the tears of mirth, then grinned at Clark "Moon flower, beautiful music; please don't tell me you actually talk like that in your fantasies?"

He grinned back "That was my Errol Flynn, you should hear my Cagney. That's when I call you a broad, then tell you to shut your yap and get your clothes off before I smack you one."

She chortled, crawled into his lap, kissed him hard then pulled back and smiled "You'll have to do it for me sometime."

"I'll even do my Fonzie for you."

"Let me guess, you snap your fingers and I come running." She asked in droll voice.

He grinned quick and bright "Yep; and I call you sweetlips or doll face."

"So when do you give the thumbs up and go Aaaaaaaaaaa?"

His smile grew until it was stretched from ear to ear "Guess?"

Lois snorted and shook her head "You're insane."

"Yeah, but do you still have a crush on me?"

"Nope." She replied shaking her head back and forth.

"You don't."

"No." She cupped his face "Forget crush, I'm crazy about you Clark Kent."

He hugged her hard and let out a deep heartfelt sigh "That's good, that's really good to hear." And standing, he picked her up and carried her back to bed.


	22. Chapter 22

Firstly, thank you to those who have given me feedback; letting me know that you're enjoying the story, and what you like about it, is very much appreciated**. **

Now secondly, this update starts in the present, then goes back and moves forwards towards the present time again. So it's six weeks later (story timeline), then five weeks earlier, 4 weeks etc until we reach the present time again which is where the story opens. Just thought I'd mention it so that no one's confused.

Linda

**

**Chapter 22**

_Six weeks later_

Clark looked around the room, and wished that he could appreciate the care the hotel management had provided for their comfort. A couple of medium sized tables sat in the centre of the room with chairs grouped around them. Two couches and a number of armchairs were placed here and there, a small stocked bar stood in the corner, while beside it resided a table that presently only carried a large vase of flowers, but would later make way for the food that would be delivered during the break.

In all the room was nicely sized, beautifully furnished, and he really really wished that he could appreciate all the trouble and care that was being shown to him and his friends, but currently felt too apprehensive to give a toss.

He x-rayed through the wall, saw the room beyond was packed to the rafters, and shuddered accordingly. Turning back to his friends, he smiled shakily "How did this happen?"

All eyes simultaneously turned to him with varying degrees of accusation "This is your fault." J'onn replied crisply then tacked on gently "My friend."

His head shook back and forth in denial "Mine but; no it's not."

"Oh yes it is." Bruce put in firmly, and each man nodded in accord.

At the screech of the mike, the tapping of the finger, and the voice calling out "testing"; Clark swallowed hard "Can't we make up an emergency and leave?"

"What emergency can we make up that will be reported in the news, so that everyone sees the men of the Justice League as a bunch of heroes, instead of bunch of lily-livered cowards who ran?" Oliver asked politely.

AC tugged at the neckline of his suit "Is it a little hot in here? I'm feeling a little hot and dry, so maybe I should go and..."

"I'll grab the fire hose and turn it on you, if you so much as take a step towards the exit." Bart threatened with a growl.

At the sound of Lois's voice calling out cheerfully "Welcome....." each man paled, and once again turned to Clark.

"This is your fault." Victor hissed "It was your mom..."

"And your girlfriend." J'onn put in gloomily.

"And your friend." Hal rounded off morosely.

Nodding dejectedly, Clark accepted full responsibility for ever allowing his loved ones anywhere near his friends.

***

_Five weeks earlier_

"Babe, are you ready?" Clark called out walking down the hall to the master bedroom. He stepped to the doorway, saw one suitcase sitting on the floor, the other half filled and open on the bed, and let out a deep sigh "I've only just dropped Fred off at the kennel, at most I was gone for 40 minutes tops; please don't tell me in that time something's come up, and you have to go away again?"

Lois looked up from folding a sweater into the suitcase and smiled "I'm not sure but was that a whine I just heard?"

He sat on the edge of the bed and let out a woeful sigh "No, I was just looking forward to us spending the weekend in Metropolis, but if you have to go away…" He paused and grumbled quietly "…if you _**have**_ to…." He took the sweater out of her hand, dumped it carelessly into the case and tugged her down onto his knee "Then I'm going too."

She shook her head "Where are you going?"

"Wherever you're going to be this weekend so am I; and I don't wanna hear any arguments from you." He pronounced militantly.

She pressed her finger against his lips "I'm not arguing."

"Why?" He questioned forthrightly "We still haven't figured out how Superman can be where you are without comment arising, so why aren't you giving me a hard time about joining you. Exactly what's going on in that busy little brain of yours?"

She shook her head amazed "You are so suspicious. What's next; bamboo shoots under my fingernails to make me confess all?" He gave a superior sniff, she grinned in return "We're still going to Metropolis, so you can forget about the mafia interrogation."

"We're still going to Metropolis?" When she nodded, he frowned and waved his hand between the suitcases "Then what's with all this? Usually you just bring a small overnight bag for the weekend; so how come you're packing so much stuff?"

"Well since you've been bugging me to bring some stuff to leave at your place, I decided to give in and do it."

"I've been bugging you to do that for months."

"Yeah, and while I was packing my overnight bag, I just decided that this time I would."

He grinned in satisfaction "You're going to leave some of your girly stuff at my place." When she nodded again, Clark picked her up off his lap, tossed her onto the bed and ignoring her squeal of surprise, jumped on top. Lois giggled; he tapped the suitcase lightly with his foot, shoving it off the bed "We have to celebrate."

"Celebrate?"

"Celebrate." He replied firmly "Your girly stuff and my guy stuff co-mingling…that sounds sexy" He finished wiggling his eyebrows.

"Our stuff is already co-mingling here." She chuckled lightly.

"And how many times have we memorialised that fact?"

"I've lost track." She returned deadpan.

He looked at her incredulous "Are you crazy woman, we haven't done anything."

She tapped his shoulder politely "I beg to differ, we've done it in every room of this house."

He settled himself more comfortably and waved his hand airily "That was nothing."

"Nothing!?" She queried dumbfounded.

"Well not nothing, _nothing_, but having your stuff at my place is different."

She shook her head fascinated "How do you figure that?"

"See, my place is a man's apartment, so having your stuff there is sexier."

"Your convoluted logic escapes me, but why don't we wait and celebrate there?" She asked politely.

He grunted rudely in response "Oh no, you're not tricking me babe, the minute mom hits town you'll make me keep my hands to myself. We're gonna celebrate right here, right now and just pretend we're at my place."

She grinned, and hooked her arms over his shoulders "You hardly spend any time at your place."

He sighed hugely in disappointment, and shook his head slowly in pity "You just don't get it."

"Oh I get it; you just wanna have sex."

"This isn't about me; it's about us." He informed her snootily.

She let out a small chuff of laughter "Now that's a good one." Rifling her fingers through his hair, she tugged his head down "Well what are you waiting for; let's celebrate."

Covering her smiling lips with his, he stopped talking and got down to action.

***

_Several hours later_

Dinner had barely started when Clark was called away for a Superman emergency. While eating, and clearing away afterwards Chloe, Martha and Lois continued to chatter, catching each other up on all the gossip. Even though they'd only seen each other a month ago, conversation didn't lack. After the kettle shrilled, hot coffee was made and the woman once again re-took their seats at the table.

"Well now that Chloe and I have finished hogging the conversation with all our news, what have you been doing since we last saw each other Martha?" Lois asked taking a sip of her coffee.

Mrs Kent sighed and lightly rolled her eyes "I've been doing the usual stuff, but a week ago I was asked to be on a committee, to help raise funds towards buying some new medical equipment for the children's hospital in Metropolis....actually I was put in charge of said committee."

"Why you?" Chloe asked with a light frown.

"It harkens back to my Senate days. The committee thought maybe with my clout we'd raise more funds, I don't actually have clout anymore but..." She trailed off, trying to ignore the flush that suffused her face.

Lois shared a smiling look with her cousin, and nodded "I bet I know why they wanted you as the figurehead...." When Martha wiggled uncomfortably, her smile turned into a grin "Everyone knows that Senator Kent was an honest woman, so they're well aware the public will trust that ALL the funds will go towards the intended project, instead of some of it disappearing into someone's pocket; correct?"

Martha blushed and nodded lightly "That's what they said."

"And they're right." Chloe asserted then sat forward interested "So what ideas have you come up with so far?"

"That's the problem, so far the only thing I can think of is holding a raffle, a bake sale, or similar. But none of those ideas will bring in much money, and I'd like to raise a respectable amount if possible."

Lois' nose wrinkled "I'm sure the three of us can come up with something better than that." Chloe nodded and the room became silent as the three women nursed their cups of coffee, while their minds began churning with ideas.

"How about holding a silent auction?" Chloe proposed thoughtfully "All you have to do is ask a few businesses to donate some stuff, with the promise of their generosity being mentioned. It's for a good cause, so that will be a big selling point, then the only outlay you'll have is for the venue."

Lois smiled at her cousin "That's a really good idea Chloe." Turning to the older woman she offered happily "And I'll be glad to help if you need it Martha."

"Me too."

At both the younger women's eagerness, Martha smiled in appreciation "Lois is right, it's a wonderful idea Chloe; and thank you both for offering to help. Since the committee consists of only five people including myself; we happily embrace all willing aid."

They smiled in return then got down to business.

"Ok, so who are we going to ask? We need stuff that people are going to want to bid on." Lois reminded the women.

"We could ask a swanky beauty parlour to donate a full day of pampering." Chloe suggested promptly.

"We could approach a fancy restaurant to provide a dinner for two." Martha chipped in.

"We can solicit a liquor merchant to contribute half a dozen bottles of really good wine." Lois suggested gleefully.

Grabbing a notebook and pen from her purse, Chloe furiously scribbled down the suggestions that continued to be called out. Tapping her pen on the table absently, she looked at the two women "We've got some really good suggestions."

"You know Martha; we could also save on the venue hire fees, if we ask a fancy hotel to allow you to host it in one of their rooms free of charge." Lois advised pensively.

"Do you think they will?"

"Never know unless you ask. If they're not willing to come to the party we can ask them for a discount, or you can use your ex-Seantor influence to tap some rich shoulders for a hand out. You know what they say 'a good deed never goes unrewarded'; so offering the hotel or the bigwigs some free advertising for their generosity, will be reward enough on its own." Lois paused and tapped her chin thoughtfully "We could...no we should actually take that a step further and get some free advertising to broadcast the auction; then we can also reassure those who donate, that their kindness will not go unnoticed."

"Free advertising from where?"

"The Daily Planet." She smiled cheerfully "The hospital's in Metropolis, and the Planet reaches millions, so it'd be perfect."

"We won't have room for millions dear."

Lois laughed lightly "I know but I doubt that everyone will be interested. However the bigger the readership the more likely we are to attract people. Depending on how we market the auction, we should be able to draw in at least one or two hundred ordinary people, or we can sell it another way and attract the bigger fish, which means less people but it'll be those who have deep pockets with money to burn."

"My god you're scary." Chloe chortled "I love it, but you're scary."

Martha giggled at Lois' proud smile.

"Well what'd you say?" Lois asked looking between the two.

"How about I ask the fancy hotel for the free room or discount, you ask my boss for the free advertising, and if we both fail Martha can start tapping the bigwigs on the shoulders for the handouts." Lois nodded agreement, and turning to the older woman Chloe continued "Once we know if our idea is going to get off the ground, then we can all begin asking the business for the free goodies to auction, what'd you think?"

"I think this campaign of action is brilliant, and you two girls are the most ruthless individuals it's ever been my pleasure to meet." Martha grinned brightly.

Chloe and Lois laughed, all three clinked coffee mugs and sat back satisfied "Ok, so what's for desert?"

They were enjoying the chocolate mousse, and throwing around a few more ideas of which business to tap for handouts when Clark arrived home.

"I left your dinner warming in the oven sweetie."

"Thanks mom." After retrieving his dinner he joined them at the table "So what have you ladies been doing?" While he ate they filled him in, he nodded accordingly and concluded "A silent auctions a good idea."

"Yeah, I thought so at first too." Lois replied with a quiet smile.

When the three turned to her curiously, she wrinkled her nose lightly "I mean you're right of course, it is a good idea..." Clark nodded again, continued to eat but when a broadcast from the radio caught his attention, he stood, grabbed a last fry off his plate and shoved it into his mouth "Hopefully this won't take long."

Once he was gone, Lois turned to the women "It is a good idea, but I have an even better one."

The two women leant in close, and at her suggestion their smiles grew to match.

***

_Four weeks earlier_

The men of the Justice League sat at the dining table of the Kent Farm enjoying a nice hearty home cooked meal. When Martha Kent called and asked each of them to come for lunch, none had the willpower, nor the desire to say no. A home cooked meal wasn't something to sneeze at, and Mrs Kent's cooking was right up there with the best.

Clark had been slightly surprised at finding that his friends had been invited to lunch at the farm for no special occasion, but knowing that his mom loved having company, and enjoying spending time with his friends, he was pleased when she told him about it. Before he'd had a chance to ask, his mom further informed him that even though they'd only spent the previous weekend together, both Lois and Chloe had also been invited, and would be joining them if he didn't mind flying them to the farm for the day, which he was more than happy to do.

The chatter around the table was casual, the food abundant, the atmosphere lively and pleasant, and none of the men knew that the boom was about to fall on them all.

After lunch was finished the men were shooed outside, and while they enjoyed a rousing game of basketball, the women washed up the lunch dishes.

At the call of desert, the men returned to the house in jovial spirits. The winners laughing, the losers sneering but at the smell of the apple pie, the game was swiftly forgotten. All hastily rushed to wash their hands then quickly re-took their seats at the table, eagerly anticipating hot crisp apple pie with lashings of cream that had been promised.

Sitting back replete with cups of rich hot coffee, the men Lois and Chloe praised Martha's cooking, she waved them all down and looked at everyone eagerly "Would anyone care for some more desert?" All the men nodded, and after serving up second rounds of generous portions, she sat back down. Sharing a swift look with Lois and Chloe, she turned to the men and smiled "Well now that you've all been fed, I have to confess to having an ulterior motive for asking you all here." She paused and laughed lightly "Not that I don't enjoy having you all here, it's nice to have a house full of company but..."

"But Martha needs your help." Chloe cut in eagerly; then promptly flushed at her lack of tact.

"What Chloe means, is that Martha's in charge of a committee to help raise funds for some new medical equipment for the children's hospital in Metropolis." Lois jumped in "Chloe and I are helping her, and we were wondering if all of you wouldn't mind contributing as well."

"I'll be happy to; how much?" Oliver offered instantly.

"I'll match whatever Oliver gives." Bruce chimed in, scooping up a piece of pie.

"I can give you a couple of hundred." Bart cheerfully intoned, and each man raised their hand simultaneously.

"We don't actually want you to give us any money at all." Martha began delicately.

"Then what?" Clark asked with a frown, noting that his friends were likewise baffled.

"We want you." Lois carelessly tossed in, and at their deeper frowns "We were thinking that the best way to raise a lot of money was by holding a bachelor auction."

Spoons stopped halfway to mouths, the men swallowed, put their bowls down carefully and stared wide-eyed.

"Bachelor auction...." Clark squeaked out "...but...but what happened to the silent auction?"

"That was a good idea, but it wouldn't bring in nearly as much money as a bachelor auction, and not just any old bachelor auction either. This one will be special and will be comprised of the men from the Justice League." Starting with the man closest to her, Lois went around the table pointing at each "The Green Arrow, Superman, Batman, the Flash, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman and last but by no means least Cyborg...." She paused for a beat and tacked on "...and any of the others that we can get."

The men all gulped, and turned to Clark with suspicion bright in their eyes. He quickly shook his head, holding up his hands "I didn't know; do you really think I would have been a party to this?"

Martha smiled genially "Clark's telling the truth, we just thought it would be best to catch you altogether; so what'd you say?"

When the men shook their heads slowly, Lois smiled persuasively "Now guys you're not seeing the big picture. Posters of all of you are hanging in more than one teenage girl's bedroom...."

"Or boys..." Chloe piped up.

When the men paled, Lois shot her cousin a huge 'shut up' look, then turned back to smile at the men once again "Chloe was just trying to point out how popular you all are, but we'll advertise that it's restricted to women over a certain age, so you don't have to worry that you'll be saddled with a star-struck kid we promise." The men relaxed slightly; Lois continued coaxingly "Grown women are in awe of you guys; before I knew who you all were I'd engaged in more than one conversation with my girlfriends about the men of the Justice League. I've also heard women talking in the Supermarket, on the street, while having drinks or a meal with their friends about which particular Super-hero they really fancy." The men flushed with pleasure, and turning to the women Lois asked "Martha, Chlo what about you?"

Martha bobbed her head and smiled nicely at the men "Lois is right, even though my friends are a bit too old for any of you, they talk about what good boys you all are, how handsome and wished they were just a bit younger."

"I'll say..." Chloe piped up with a light chuckle "I had lunch with a few of the women from work a couple of days ago and mentioned the Justice League in passing, y'know just to see what they'd say. Well they began to argue about which of you was the greatest, and one of them has a real thing for you." She finished pointing at the Martian.

"Me." J'onn yelped.

"Mmmm, she thinks you're really sexy."

"But I'm green."

"And sexy."

Lois nodded "Yep, my friends are the same way; they're all married, all crazy about their husbands but each one also carries a little torch for at least one of you." She tilted her head and smiled "Trish thinks that J'onn is just the cutest thing ever, Shelley has a thing for Cyborg, Carly asserts that Flash is the cat's meow, Julie says that Batman is sizzling, Annette is crazy about the Green Lantern, Sandra's gone over the Green Arrow and Abra, well she's a total earth mother and just loves Aquaman."

"And Superman?" Clark asked miffed, ignoring the eye rolls of his friends.

Lois smiled and patted his shoulder "You know my friend Sharlene?" He nodded cautiously "Well she thinks you're all great, but she has professed that if Superman asked her to fly away with him, that she'd be hard pressed to say no, even though she loves her John."

They men all turned to Clark once again; he shook his head stupefied "They're telling the truth. I was listening to their pulses guys, they're telling the honest to god truth."

"Of course we are; just standing around in your suits you guys are smoking." Chloe put in firmly.

"And doubly so when you're rushing around helping people; believe me if a woman doesn't find you lot hot while you're saving the world, then she doesn't have a pulse." Lois finished resolutely and the other two women nodded in accord.

The men all felt somewhat chuffed but still somewhat uneasy at the idea. However, when Lois drawled meditatively "Just think of it, hundreds of women all vying to pay good money just to spend a few hours with you" Their eyes opened wide and they turned to each other in alarm.

"Um babe..." Clark coughed loudly, and when Lois turned to him with an expectant smile "You're kinda sounding like a pimp."

She let out a peal of laughter "Sorry, I was a bit over the top. What I'm trying to say is that women will jump at the chance of getting a date with you."

"Boys..." At Martha's voice the men all turned to her "I won't be upset or angry if you don't want to do it. We girls talked about it beforehand, and we all understand why you'd be hesitant with our proposal."

"Martha's right guys, in all honesty I wouldn't be crazy about the idea if I was asked to do it, so we do understand if you say no." Chloe put in and Lois followed it up with "I wouldn't be keen on it either; we just thought it couldn't hurt to ask, but whatever you decide will be ok with us. We still have the silent auction idea, or if you just want to donate some money that's fine too."

"Can we talk it over first?" Victor asked speaking on behalf of the men.

The women nodded, the men retreated outside and after a short discussion trooped back in, leaving Bruce to be the spokesman "If we agree, what's involved?"

"All it will entail is having dinner and conversation with the woman who manages to secure a date with you." Chloe replied promptly "If you agree; all you have to do is turn up for the auction in your superhero outfits, and then turn up for your dates dressed in the same manner."

Lois took up the reigns "Chloe, Martha and I will organise everything else. We'll ask a few restaurants to offer a free dinner for two in a somewhat secluded spot, so you don't have to worry about people staring. However, I guarantee that will also boost their custom once people know a superhero has dined there, so it's a win-win for both sides. We'll even organise the car to pick you and the lucky lady up for your date...."

"But that's the thing Lo, any of us on a date...." Clark trailed off, sharing a swift look with his friends. He understood their major worry and heartily shared it.

"We have that covered." Lois nodded confidently "I'm going to ask Perry White if we can advertise the auction for free in the Planet, in return for him receiving exclusive photos of the Superhero and their date to be put in his paper. That will ensure no one gets the wrong idea about why you're publicly having dinner with a woman, and Perry will be happy because it will only be the Planet that has the picture, with maybe a few words from you and the lady as a short caption; which is another win-win." When Clark's mouth opened, she held up a hand "The time and date for the outing won't be publically broadcast, so hopefully the bad guys won't know about it until after the event."

"What's to stop the women from saying anything to their friends?" Bart asked seriously.

Chloe shook her head lightly "We can't stop that, the best we can do is to try and mitigate the circumstances by ensuring the dates won't all be held on the same night. If the bad guys try anything, the police and emergency personnel will be on hand to help the public. They know how to do their jobs, and they've never just waited around expecting you guys to be available to help them." The men nodded at this.

"Where's it going to be held?"

Martha fielded the next question "We thought that holding everything in Metropolis would be best since that's where the hospital is, plus it will make it easier to coordinate if it's all in one city. However, if you prefer to have the date in your home cities, then we'll just hold the auction in Metropolis, and have your date flown to wherever you like." She cleared her throat softly "I'm hoping my son will help with that part if necessary."

Clark's lips crooked up at the corners and his eyes moved to his girlfriend when Lois next spoke "The advertising for the auction itself won't say which superheroes are going to be involved; it will just say some of the men from the Justice League." She paused and tacked on "I know it's a risk but those with powers can keep an ear out for trouble, and those of you who don't have special powers aren't exactly slack in taking action swiftly. So if anyone tries anything during the auction itself, you shouldn't be caught unaware, right?"

They nodded once again, and finishing quietly Lois promised "We'll take care of everything guys; all you have to provide is some of your free time."

The men conferred quietly once again, before agreeing.

***

Sitting on the couch watching TV several hours later, Clark slipped his arm around Lois' waist and patted her hip "So you and your friends discussed the Justice League huh?"

"Uh huh."

"And who was your favourite?" He asked smugly.

"It was a really hard call, so I could never decide." Lois replied promptly.

"What'd you mean a hard call?" Clark groused, and pointed to himself.

"Superman wasn't part of the JLA then." She reminded him gently "My friends had their favourites, but I was always ecumenical." At his lifted brows, she shrugged casually "What can I say; I thought they were all hot."

"But now it's Superman who does it for you right?" He nudged harder.

Lois pursed her lips and sighed deeply "Well since I know that you're him, my opinion is no longer unbiased. As Superman is known to be fair and impartial, I'm sure you don't really expect me to form an assessment when my judgement is clouded."

"Screw fair; who's your favourite woman?" Clark demanded, giving her the fish eye.

She sniggered "Well let's see..."

"Lois!"

Hearing the outrage in his voice, she pressed her lips together, cleared her throat and let out a deep sigh "Fine, if you must know, it's Superman."

"Just as well; something's wrong when a man can't even get his girl to say that he's the best." Clark replied huffily.

Grinning, she lifted up slightly and pressed her lips to his chin penitently.

"So how much are you gonna bid on me?"

"Nothing."

"What, but...but I thought that you would. Are you saying you're not going to bid on me?" He asked alarmed, reaching over to pick up the remote and turning off the television.

"Yep." She smiled and patted his arm in consolation "Your mom, Chloe and I aren't going to be bidding at all."

"You mean we can't count on any of you?"

"Nope."

"But Lo you have to, otherwise god only knows who I'll end up with."

"That's what's so exciting."

"I don't want exciting, I want you." At her lifted brows "I mean you're enough excitement for me, c'mon Lo you have to buy me."

"Clark I can't. Your mom, Chloe and I have worked out all the logistics. Since neither of them wanna be the MC, that honour has fallen into my lap. Chloe said that since I can talk underwater, that I'm perfect for the job." She pouted slightly "But I don't talk that much anymore, right?"

He cleared his throat but didn't respond.

She sighed hugely in reply "You guys have the easy part, all you have to do is stand there..." ignoring his snort she continued "I have to write notes that extols each of the men's virtues without making it sound practiced. I also have to ensure that my notes cover any and all contingencies for a smooth running commentary on the night."

He frowned lightly "People already know who we are, so why do you have to say stuff about us?"

"Because I wanna us to rake in a bundle, so I'm determined the women understand just what they're getting when they bid." She shrugged casually.

"Can't you bid on me quietly."

"No..." She laughed lightly "The committee members and all those involved aren't allowed to participate."

"Who came up with this hair brained idea anyway?" He groused "The silent auction was better."

Lois cleared her throat and reached for the remote "I can't really remember, it was just one of those throw away remarks and um..." she switched the TV back on, and snuggled into his side "...this is a really exciting movie huh?"

He took the remote out of her hand, turned the TV off again, titled her chin up and at the discomfiture on her face, his eyes narrowed "This was your idea."

She shrugged half-heartedly "I might have said something."

"What is wrong with you woman? First you don't care about groupies, and you're now selling me off to the highest bidder, what's next?"

She saw the amusement in his eyes and promptly replied "Next is trying to palm you off onto someone I detest."

He laughed and tumbled her down on the couch "Are you trying to get rid of me?"

She tugged his shirt from his jeans, before slipping her hands underneath to stroke his back "Well you haven't given me any reason to keep you around today."

"I'm going to give you one now." Standing up, he threw her over his shoulder, and headed towards the bedroom. When Lois squealed, he slapped her bottom lightly, before proceeding to rub away the non-existent hurt, making her chortle out loud.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

_Present day – Two hours earlier_

Clark sat on his bed in his Superman suit watching while Lois applied her makeup. Usually he enjoyed watching her get all dolled up, but right now had other things on his mind. When she slipped into her dress and tugged it up before presenting him with her back, he automatically stood and slid the zipper up, sat back down and continued to watch her absently.

Lois hummed softly while moving around the room. After slipping on earrings, she stepped into the shoes which were high enough to give her a nose bleed, sprayed on perfume, and after taking one final look in the mirror turned to Clark "Well, what'd you think?"

He looked her up and down then nodded "You look nice."

Hearing the remote tone in his voice, and understanding exactly why he wasn't trying to feel her up, tumble her down or looking at her with appreciation, she sat beside him and picked up his hand "Are you gonna be ok?"

He rolled his eyes lightly "Yeah, but what if an emergency comes up and I, or any of the men have to leave during the auction?"

"The women of the Justice League should be able to handle anything that comes up, but in case they can't and all of you are needed, we have that covered." At the curiosity on his face "We've got slides and a projector already in place; so if necessary we'll put up pictures of you on the view screen, and the women can still tender bids."

"Well then maybe we could..."

She shook her head "Uh huh, it'll be better if you guys are there; the slides are only going to be used as a backup." Lois leant up and pressed her lips against his cheek "You look great, you'll do great and your mom really appreciates this."

He blew out a deep breath and nodded "Yeah I know."

She lifted her hand to wipe away the smear of lipstick from his cheek, but instead of staying still for her ministrations, he tumbled her down on the bed "Wait..." At her light frown, he grinned "Let me give you more to wipe away first." Bending down, his mouth sealed with hers in a long deep kiss.

When they were both breathless, he lifted his mouth from hers and smiled "Now I feel better."

Lois giggled lightly "Now you'd better have another shower and change the suit, or people are going to smell my perfume on you."

"Good." He sat up, stood her up in front of him, and swept his eyes up and down, taking in the full picture "You look beautiful."

"Thank you."

She looked at the clock then back to him "I'd better go." Leaning down she pressed her lips to his nose "Don't forget to have another shower, and since we can't arrive together I'll see you there ok?"

"You need to re-do your lipstick babe."

"I've got it in my purse, so I'll fix it just before we start." After snagging her purse, she smiled, waved and left.

_Present time once again_

Clark attempted to block out Lois' voice as she made the opening welcome greeting to all those in attendance. Normally he loved to hear Lois talk; he enjoyed listening while she prattled away about this or that. However, at the moment, her voice seemed abnormally loud, and as soothing as nails raking down a blackboard to his tender eardrums.

Bart raced over, closed the door properly, and felt his shoulders droop in relief at the soft click. Each man sighed quietly as blessed silence filled the room.

"Maybe we can block the door with something..."' After looking around the room, Oliver signalled to Clark "Stand in front and don't let anyone in."

Clark rubbed his hand over the nape of his neck, and wondered what he'd done to deserve this. He loved Lois, he'd do anything for her, but this seemed above and beyond. He also loved his mom and Chloe, but was more than a little tempted to do as Oliver suggested, and block the door so they couldn't get in.

Looking at his friends, he knew that like him, they hoped this would all be over soon.

At the small tap on the door, the men's eyes wheeled in their heads, while the relief they'd felt at the silence only minutes before vanished.

Martha poked her head in the door, swept a smile around the room, and settled on Oliver. Standing, he blew out one last deep breath and with his friend's words of encouragement ringing in his ears, walked out of the room. He'd taken no more than two steps forward when he heard the soft click of the door being put to behind him. Swinging around, he wondered how it would look for the Green Arrow to bang on the door calling his friends a bunch of rotten bastards, but at Martha's touch on his arm, he turned back and continued walking forward.

***

After greeting the women, thanking them for their time and reminding them what their money was contributing towards, Lois smiled invitingly "And now ladies, let's start the proceedings and begin raising some money, shall we?"

The women all clapped, and waited in breathless anticipation for the first Super-hero to walk on the stage.

"First up we have Mr Green Arrow himself." Lois introduced, sweeping out her hand to the side.

Oliver stepped onto the stage, heard the collective sigh from the audience and smiled nervously in return.

Lois patted his arm, reminded him softly that it was all for a good cause, promised to take it easy on him, then began playing the part of selling him off to his adoring public.

"My, my, my..." Lois hummed into the mic. She walked around him, looked him up and down, squeezed his bicep and snickered softly when he muttered 'knock it off'.

Smiling cheerfully, she turned to face the audience "Well ladies, this gentleman is the founder of the Justice League and an all round good guy..." She wiggled her brows "...as you can see he's all round gorgeous as well."

The women's smiles grew wider, and as one, they all sat forward eagerly in their seats.

"If you've ever had a hankering to be Maid Marion for one night, then this gentleman is the just one to make all your dreams come true. So, what am I bid for some very lucky lady to share a nice intimate dinner for two, with the man who reminds us all of another who was branded an outlaw, but was actually the most chivalrous of heroes?"

The women began calling out bids, one after another after another. When the amount reached $500, Lois shook her head sadly. "Ladies, that's almost insulting. This is the Green Arrow we're talking about, not just any old schumck. Now let's be serious; this man has helped to save the world, so I think it behoves us as women..." She held up her finger and corrected herself before waving her hand in his direction "... no it demands that we show him the respect that he deserves. A man might only pay $500 for dinner with some super-model that won't even eat a piece of lettuce, but as women let's show these men of the Justice League exactly what we're made off, and just how much we appreciate them. So who's going to raise that $500, hmmm?"

The bidding became louder, the money climbed and when it was over Lois smiled gleefully, and pointed the way to the cashier.

***

When Oliver returned to the back room, he sat down heavily on the nearest vacant seat "Get me a drink. I don't care what it is but it make it alcoholic and straight up; no rocks, shaved ice or watering down; just booze."

"How'd it go?" Clark asked anxiously, handing his friend a straight scotch.

"You weren't listening or watching?"

"I was too frightened." He replied shamefaced.

Oliver took a sip of his drink, enjoyed the slight burn as it slid down his throat and leant his head back. He looked at all his friends in turn, stared at Clark and shook his head in pity "They're demons, those women are a bunch of insane maniacs; and you're girlfriends egging them on."

Clark raced over, grabbed himself a drink and came back "What'd she do?"

"When the bidding got up to $500 dollars, Lois shamed the women into coughing up more."

"$500, she wasn't happy with $500." AC asked astonished.

"No way."

"So how much did you go for?"

$3,000."

Bruce whistled "Some woman paid $3,000 just to have dinner with you?"

"A table of women pooled their money to have dinner with me."

"You're going to have dinner with a table of women?"

"Yeah."

At the knock on the door, all heads turned and when the door opened Martha popped her head in "Victor you're up." she called out cheerfully.

Victor grabbed Oliver's scotch, slammed it down, straightened his shoulders and walked to the door confidently. Just before stepping through, he turned back to his friends, and gave an anxious smile "See ya."

They waved forlornly, all saluted him and he was gone.

***

Lois smiled at Victor, said a few quiet words to let him know that it'd be alright, before taking a sip of water and turning to the audience. "Well ladies, here he is; Mr Cyborg himself, and as you can see, he's even better in the flesh than he is on your TV screens."

Victor looked at the audience, saw appreciation from some, flirtatious smiles from others, and plastered a shaky smile on his face. He kept reminding himself that he was half machine and hoped to god his machine parts would stop him from sweating through this suit. Then further worried that his machine parts would rust, causing him to need oiling like the Tin Man.

When Lois began to call out his attributes, he felt his cheeks become hot, then hotter again when the women started shouting out bids drowning out her voice.

Lois smiled in satisfaction, took note of the bids, nodded at Chloe and Martha as they moved through the throng of women, pointing out anyone that she missed, and looked eagerly at the crowd. However, when the bidding stalled at $700, she held up a hand and nodded "Ladies, just give me a minute, and I'll let you know if it's worth parting with your hard-earned cash, for this very handsome specimen." She smiled wickedly, stepped forward and planted her lips smack dab on his.

After letting him go, she turned back to the audience, licked her lips and grinned "I'd pay top dollar for another one of those." She swung around to wink at Victor then spun back to the women once again "This man not only helps to keep the world safe, but he's a hell of a kisser to boot." Her lips lifted in a half smile of challenge "I don't know about you ladies, but one is equally as important as the other in my book."

The women went wild, the bidding went up and Victor was duly sold.

***

Victor returned to the room, looked at Clark and shook his head in awe "Man, you are one lucky bastard."

Clark scratched his head and frowned lightly "What'd you mean?"

"Lois; her kisses are scorching."

"I can vouch for that." Bruce, Oliver and AC called out simultaneously with quick grins, which turned to even quicker shrugs when Clark narrowed his eyes at them.

Swinging back to Victor, Clark got back to the matter at hand "How do you know what Lois kisses like?" He asked suspiciously.

Victor grinned, nodded thanks for the drink handed to him and smiled at finding his friends were all looking at him with interest "When the bidding stalled at $700, she kissed me, said a few words to the audience that made me feel pretty choice, and pushed the bidding up higher."

The men grinned, elbowed each other and whistled.

"Hang on, hang on" Clark held up his hands and asked apprehensively "Tongue?"

Victor laughed and shook his head "No, no tongue and the kiss was just for show; but it was pretty damn impressive all the same."

"It seems that she's determined to get the women to fork over a bundle of money tonight." Bart remarked with a smile. The smile promptly dropped off his face, when Chloe tapped on the door, stuck her head in the room and called his name.

***

Bart zipped onto the stage, flashed an engaging smile at the women, sped out and returned with a bunch of flowers which he presented to Lois with a light bow, and hoped that his animation disguised his stage fright at being the centre of attention.

He'd always prided himself on loving the ladies; he loved the way they looked, smelt, their fussy little mannerisms, and their little irritations. It was rare for him to meet a woman that he didn't appreciate; old or young, short or tall, trim or plump; he adored every single little thing about them. But that was one on one, seeing a horde of women sizing him up was unnerving.

Some were sitting calmly with little smiles on their faces, others were dressed in low cut everything and coquettishly smiling, while a few looked like they were mentally undressing him. Swallowing heavily, he smiled back charmingly and hoped that he'd be bought by a nun who wanted him to read the bible to her because her eyesight was now poorly.

Lois flashed him a smile, said a few flirtatious words, he riposted back cheerfully, heard the giggles from the audience and further hoped that that would be enough for the bids to come pouring in. He didn't know whether it was his playful tone with Lois, or if the women were just desperate, but his hopes were soon realised.

Smiling jauntily at the audience when it was over, he stepped into the wings and let out a deep breath. The worst was over thank goodness; now he could have a drink.

Returning to the room Bart helped himself to a drink, and toasted the men yet to be called "It was bloody awful but at least I'm done."

"Hear, hear." Oliver and Victor called out raising their glasses in return.

At the tap on the door, all eyes swung in that direction. Chloe popped her head in, smiled at J'onn; he stood and shimmered before solidifying once again.

"What was that?" Bruce asked politely.

"Nervous habit" J'onn growled. At the cleared throats, he shot them all a look and walked regally out the room.

Chloe looked at the men solemnly "After J'onn we'll be taking a break, so the food should be delivered shortly ok?"

They nodded, and the door had no sooner closed than the men began to laugh.

***

J'onn strolled onto the stage, saw the women nodding and gesturing to each other, heard the loud comment of "Oh my god, look at his pecs." And concurrently flinched and felt his green face burn bright red in response.

Lois' lips twitched, but at the embarrassment on his face she sobered, whispered that she'd get it over with quickly, and promptly swung to face the audience.

The Martian's obvious unease touched more than one woman's heart, unlike previously this time the bids were called out sedately, but with no less enthusiasm and J'onn shortly found his ordeal over.

Once he'd left the stage, Lois informed the ladies that it was time to enjoy a short break, and hoped they would all enjoy the canapés and champagne their cover charge had paid for. She'd no sooner finished speaking than servers appeared with trays of hot and cold canapés for each table, wine swiftly followed and the chatter in the ballroom grew louder.

Those who hadn't been lucky enough to secure a date with a superhero as yet, discussed strategy with their friends on how to ensure they went home a winner. Those who had, were more than happy to just enjoy the rest of the auction content with their success, and spent the break chatting about their upcoming date with their super-escort.

Stepping into the back room, Martha, Chloe and Lois joined the men during the recess. After helping themselves to some snacks, the ladies took seats at the table; enjoying both the delicacies provided and being able to put their feet up for the next half hour.

"How are you holding up guys?" Chloe asked cheerfully.

The men rolled their eyes, scarfed down the food that had been provided, and nodded.

"Would you ladies like a drink?"

"Just water please." They replied simultaneously, before looking at each other and sharing a small laugh.

Martha looked at each of the men in turn before addressing them all "Thank you once again for doing this. I know that you're all uncomfortable, but I want you to know that I really appreciate the way you're all willing to put yourselves out there to raise money."

Since their mouths were full, the men smiled and nodded. Chasing down the canapé with a sip of water, Bruce patted the older woman's hand "You're welcome Martha. We might be uncomfortable..." he shook his head and corrected "...hell we're really uncomfortable, but if escorting a woman to dinner...or in Oliver's case, a table of women will help raise funds then we're happy to do it."

She grinned at him, then turned at Oliver's voice "I doubt the restaurant will want to provide dinner for me and six ladies, so I'll pick up the tab for that Martha."

When she began to protest, he shook his head firmly "I can well afford it, so let me ok?" She smiled in appreciation "Thank you." He inclined his head then nodded it in his friend's direction "Bruce and I have also decided to match whatever you make tonight; so your money's just tripled." Martha flushed with pleasure, and got up to kiss both men on the cheeks before making her way around the table to similarly thank all the others.

"You've been doing really great guys." Lois smiled at each of the men who'd already been called, then turned to the ones who were to be called after the break "And now that I'm sure you've heard how easy it is, you lot a feel better right?" She asked rhetorically, ignoring their light eye rolls in return.

Clark rubbed her thigh absently "Just promise to make it quick, ok babe?"

She patted his hand "It'll be quick and painless I promise. Now that the women are warmed up, the biddings getting quicker so it should only be another hour to 90 minutes at most."

Once finished, she took a sip of water, checked her watch and stood "It's almost time to start again; are you guys going to be ok?" She asked seriously.

They nodded in response and after flashing a quick smile around the table, she made her excuses and stepped out to visit the ladies with Chloe and Martha fast on her heels. After washing their hands, and fixing their make-up, the women stepped out but came to a halt at finding Clark leaning against the wall.

"Can I talk to you for a minute Lo?"

"Sure." She nodded at the women when they excused themselves to return to the room, and turned to her boyfriend.

After a quick sweep to ensure no one had slipped backstage, Clark clasped Lois' hand, stepped towards a room that he'd already found vacant, and after stepping inside and closing the door at their backs, switched the light on.

"What's up?"

"Hmm, well it's about the kiss you gave Victor; was that really necessary babe?"

She grinned quick and bright "Nope but it did help."

He scratched his ear, nodded and shook his head "Can you please save your lips for me?"

"Do you want me to demonstrate the kiss that I gave him?" He nodded, and smiling she leant up, placed a smacking kiss on his lips and dropped back to her feet.

He tilted his head consideringly "Well it wasn't bad, but it's nothing like the kisses I normally get."

"Of course not; the one I gave him was just for show." Lois patted his chest, pulled his head down, planted her lips on his, and proceeded to give him evidence of what a proper kiss entailed. When they broke apart she smiled "That's the difference between the kiss I gave him, and the kind I share with you."

"Share?"

"Share." She repeated firmly.

He ran his tongue over his lips to capture her taste and grinned "Ok."

"Ok."

Slipping his arms around her waist, he lifted her up until their faces were level "Even though the kiss Victor got was paltry in comparison, your lips still pack a wallop baby, so save them for me anyway."

"Ok."

He smiled, pressed his lips softly against hers, before lowering her back to the ground.

She opened her purse, retrieved a tissue and handed it to him, then slipped out her compact and lipstick. After making the necessary repairs, she looked at Clark, giggled lightly and taking the tissue from him, proceeded to wipe his mouth carefully before tucking the soiled napkin into her purse and snapping it shut.

After x-raying through the wall and seeing the all clear, they stepped outside the room and parted ways. Her back to the ballroom; and him back to his buddies for joint strength to get through the coming ordeal.

***

"Well ladies, now that we've all enjoyed the delicious snacks and drinks that were so beautifully prepared by this establishment, are you ready for the last half of the auction?" At the eager claps, hoots and whistles, Lois grinned "Ok, and now that we're all warmed up, let's see who we have first up on the list?" She looked down at her notes coyly, looked back up and drawled invitingly "Well, well, well ladies, we have right here, right now the mysteriously and sinfully sexy Dark Knight himself."

At the combined gasp from the audience, Bruce stepped out of the wings and walked towards the podium, wondering silently if Lois would like a job in marketing and communications.

Lois looked at the audience, saw the eagerness with the touch of awed trepidation on the women's faces, slid her eyes to Bruce and licked her lips slowly "How many times have you seen news footage of Batman striding along, his cape swooshing behind him, and thought how intriguingly attractive he was? Then he turns around for a moment, just a quick flash and you see his eyes glittering behind the mask, his lips one tight line..." She blew out a soft breath, pressed her lips together and continued in a hushed voice "And your tummy just flutters. Then it clicks in that you're looking at Batman, one of the worlds good guys, and your tummy just flutters all over again."

Bruce's lips tilted slightly, his eyes glittered behind his mask, while his mind simultaneously cringed at Lois words and hummed _damn but she makes me sound good_.

The women obviously thought so as well, as trepidation was pushed aside in the fervour of securing a date with Batman himself. As the amount climbed higher, one woman then another dropped out, until it was down to two who climbed to their feet, zealously continuing to yell counter offers, each determined to out bid the other.

"Ladies" Bruce cut in softly.

At his voice, they gasped, turned to look at him, and swallowed heavily.

"If you would consent to pool your money together, I would be more than happy to escort you both to dinner."

Both nodded silently, he smiled and inclined his head, and Lois happily pointed the way to the cashier. As Bruce was making his way from the stage, one woman called out excitedly to the other "We have a date with Batman."

The other screeched back "Did you see his smile; oh my god he's freaking gorgeous."

He continued walking sedately from the stage, and once out of view all but sprinted back to the room.

"Your girlfriend could sell ice to the Eskimo's." He informed Clark dryly before stepping over to pour himself a drink.

Clark groaned "What'd she do now?"

"Some people are scared of me right?" The men all nodded, he lifted his drink in a salute and inclined his head "Well according to Lois; when women see Batman striding down the street with his cape swooshing behind him..."

"Wait; did she actually say swooshing?" AC interrupted with a light chuckle.

Bruce nodded "Yep, she made him...me sound like I was the sexiest thing on two legs." He paused to sip his drink and shook his head "I hope that none of the bad guys ever find out what she said. I can just imagine the Joker making my life a living hell, with talk about how darkly sinfully sexy I am."

The men all hooted in laughter, he nodded once again "And yes, she said that too." He sipped the bourbon and ruminated out loud "I never realised that I was intriguingly attractive."

At his words, Clark sputtered out the drink he'd just taken, and coughed "Lo's got a gift with spreading the bullshit alright."

Bruce stood up straight and asked with false indignation "Are you saying that I'm not?"

He shot his friend and grin and held up a hand "Not to me."

"Thank god."

At the tap on the door, Clark gulped loudly and turned to face Chloe "My turn?" he squeaked out. She nodded, twitched her finger in the come gesture, and after receiving hearty slaps of encouragement, he walked towards the door but turned back at the call of his name.

"It's just as well that you're wearing boots."

"Why?"

"With all the bull Lois has already said tonight, the stage must be knee deep in crap by now."

With a quick nodding laugh, he turned and stepped out the door.

***

"And now Ladies let's give a warm welcome to the newest Superhero on the block." Turning in his direction, she smiled when Clark walked confidently onto the stage.

He came to a stop a couple of feet from the podium, stood in his regulation Superman stance; legs slightly apart, arms folded, and determinedly blocked his ears to the whispers around the room. However, at the avaricious looks in the women's eyes, he silently wished that his cape was covering his front instead of his back.

Lois strolled towards him, whispered that he looked great, promised to make it up to him later and began.

When his girlfriend began to wax poetic about his powers, Clark felt like rolling his eyes; when she began a running commentary on some of his deeds he felt the flush creep up his neck. However, when the women clapped, whistled and called out excitedly at her words he wanted to hide.

Oliver was right, these women were insane. He was a superhero, he was almost indestructible and could face most anything with confidence, but seeing the horde of women looking at him with lust, appreciation and something else made his tummy ache.

How could his mom do this to him? How could his girlfriend? How could his friend? And why did his mom have to make his briefs so tight? Maybe he could put his arms down and fold his hands over his lower body. The horde of women didn't cause him to feel the least bit of excitement, but oy.

Bids came in thick and fast, Lois' smile grew in consequence, and he just wished that she'd accept and offer already and get it over with.

"Sold!" Lois finally called out.

While his mom escorted the woman to the pay master stationed at the back of the room, Lois turned to him, smiled shyly and thanked him for his time.

Clark inclined his head, smiled informally, and turned for the wings. He'd only taken a few steps when he heard one woman whisper to her friend "He's just so dreamy....."

"And so yummily good." Her friend replied in a voice loud enough to carry.

Feeling the flush that had receded creep up his neck once again, he ruthlessly stopped himself from taking flight and continued walking sedately back to the sanctuary of his buddies. His mind however, furiously discarded one idea after another of just how his girlfriend could make it up to him.

***

When Lois called his name, AC took a deep breath, stepped from the wings onto the stage and immediately heard the sighs and 'mmm' noises that escaped more than one woman in the audience.

He smiled at Lois, nodded at her welcome, then turned and smiled at the assembly. This was worse than he imagined it was going to be. Shooting the bull with his buddies about beating the ladies off with a stick was one thing, being the centre of attention from a bunch of man hungry women was another. He silently promised that he'd never ever lie to his friends again about the plethora of females who threw themselves at him, if Lois was just kind enough to get this over with quickly.

Lois smiled, brought the mike to her lips and began "Well ladies, as you know every Superhero is special for the unique gifts and/or talents they have, which they use for the purposes of protecting mankind. But this particular superhero is special because he's almost royalty; why he's like hmmm, dare I say it…" She teased lightly, before sending AC a shy smile and finishing with "…he's like a living breathing King Neptune."

When AC muttered 'shut up' from the corner of his mouth, she smilingly cleared her throat, noted that some of the women were wiggling excitedly, while others sat forward enthusiastically, and all sported eyes round with wonder.

"Unlike Neptune though, Aquaman uses his gifts to bring unity and understanding between man, and the creatures that live in the sea." Holding out her hand in his direction she continued animatedly "Some people give a donation to help save the dolphins or whales, but Aquaman goes the extra mile. He loves all our oceanic friends and fights to ensure that they are protected, in the same way that he helps ordinary people like you or me. He's the Dr Doolittle of the sea, so if you're a woman who cares for this world and not just your own little pocket of it; then this man is right up your alley." Lois smiled in glee when feminine voices began to call out excitedly.

***

After the last man had been auctioned off, and the final words were spoken, the evening finally came to an end. While the mass of women made their way outside, the hotel staff began to clear up, the banker and his associate busily began to count the night's take, and the women once again joined the men.

"Well guys we managed to raise quite a bit of money tonight, and it was all thanks to you." Lois smiled at the men, turned to the women and nodded, before swinging back to face the men "And as a personal thank you, the three of us are going to take all of you out to dinner in repayment."

"You do not have to repay us..." J'onn began but was quickly elbowed aside by Bart.

"Oh yes they do; so when are we going?" He asked eagerly.

"Just send me a list of dates when you're all free for the next month, and I'll organise it." Lois replied promptly.

"If it's on offer, I'll take another one of Mrs Kent's home cooked meals instead." Bruce put in with a smile.

"Martha." The elder Kent corrected firmly "And I'll be happy to, so whoever would like a home cooked meal, or would prefer to go out to dinner just let Lois know and we'll arrange it."

The men exchanged one quick look, turned back to the ladies and smiled "Home cooked."

Flushing in pleasure Martha nodded "Done."

***

_Back at Lois' house_

"Close your eyes." Lois called from the bathroom.

"Why?'

"Just do it." She repeated patiently.

Sticking her head out the door, she saw Clark sitting up in bed with his eyes closed, took a step forward, raised one arm high on the side of the doorjamb, placed her other hand on her hip and posed "You can open them now."

Clark's eyes opened, fastened on her and shot sparks. At first glance all he could take in was that she was wearing a short white satin and lace whatever. He blinked once, and felt his mouth water at the sight of her sleek smooth skin peeking through the open sides of the nightdress, held together only with loose crisscrossing ribbons. His mind skittered, his fingers itched to tug gently on the ribbons leading him to glory. When Lois shifted languidly, ran her hand down her side and onto her thigh, he swiped the tip of his tongue over his bottom lip, focused once again and noticed the lace trimming, the tiny bows at the edges and wondered how it was possible that the maker had hit the exact combination of sensuality and sweetness. His eyes followed the line from the hem of the nightdress to her fingers teasingly playing with edge sitting high on her thigh, and down her long well toned legs before reversing direction again. Feeling his penis swell and harden, he shifted slightly, lifted his eyes to hers, and swallowed hard "It's beautiful; take it off."

Lois let out a small husky gurgle, slinked over to the bed, crawled up slowly and finished by straddling his thighs "You like?"

"I like very much." He lifted one hand, tugged at the bodice of the nightdress gently, before sliding his hands down the sides of her torso and onto her thighs. His hands slipped underneath to smooth up and around to her back, but at the touch of lace against his fingertips, he lifted the hem of the negligee slightly, took a peek at the matching panties and smiled before raising his eyes to hers "Where the hell do you buy your underwear; sexy is me?"

She grinned and corrected "This is a chemise and matching panties set; not underwear."

"Lo I've seen your nighties, and I've seen your underwear; you can call it anything you like, but I call it heaven, and am just grateful you wear it." His fingers toyed with the edge of the ribbon "I haven't seen this one before, is it new?"

"Uh huh, I told you that I'd make it up to you." She smiled enticingly.

"So you did." He murmured; and hooking her arms around his neck, Lois leant forward and locked her lips onto his.

When their mouths parted, he grasped her gently by the waist, leant her back slightly, and swept his eyes up and down "You do know this feminine confection reveals more than it conceals?"

"Mmmm."

Sitting her back up, his fingers latched onto the ribbons dangling either side of her hips and tugged gently. As the material loosened, he slid the nightdress up and off, before tossing it aside carelessly and pressing her down to the mattress. Leaving one hand sitting on the bed, Clark stroked the other over her collar bone, gently smoothed it over her breasts and down to sit low on her quivering tummy "The stuff you wear now, beats the hell out of the flannel pyjamas you used to."

"I haven't worn those for a long long time." She returned with sultry smile.

His lips tilted, his hands moved down, his fingers slipped under the lace edge of the panties at her hips "Lift your hips Lo" He asked softly. When she did, he slid the flimsy bit of nothing down and off, his eyes took their fill, moving over her form in admiration before lifting to hers once again "It's not that I don't appreciate it baby because I do; but this is how I prefer you."

"Are you saying that I wasted my money?"

His head shook back and forth minutely, while his hand swirled over her tummy "Never; just don't expect to wear that stuff for long."

"If it stayed on for long, then it's not doing its job." She replied with a tiny smile.

Tugging his briefs off impatiently, Clark lay down and gathered her in his arms "You're so damn beautiful Lois."

"I'm glad you think so." She murmured softly, stroking her hand up and down his arm.

Leaning forward, he pressed his lips gently into the hollow of her throat, before gliding them up the line of her neck, to her jaw and chin before claiming her mouth with his.

***

Afterwards Clark shifted to lie on his back, picked Lois up to lay her full length on him, and sighed in contentment.

"Was the auction as bad as you thought it would be?" Lois asked, while lazily rubbing her cheek against his chest.

"Worse, but it was for a good cause." He replied pressing a kiss to the crown of her head.

"Yeah it was and your date will be fine too." She replied, raising her head to smile reassuringly at him.

"It's not really a date, I prefer to think of it as a business transaction that will last only for a few hours, but I hope an emergency doesn't crop up, because I really don't wanna have to reschedule." He paused and rolled his eyes "Am I supposed to give the woman a kiss?"

"That's up to you; you don't have to, or you can give her the kind I gave Victor or just give her a peck on the cheek." Lois replied simply.

"When's my business transaction supposed to be?"

She giggled softly, nuzzling her lips against his jaw "Next Friday night."

He ran one hand across her back, while the other moved down to circle over her bottom "I'll be glad when it's over."

She raked her fingers through his hair and pressed her lips to his nose "You'll be just fine. If the woman's nervous; and I guarantee she will be then just make her feel relaxed by chatting about this or that. Since you told the media that Superman hasn't been on this planet for long, you can lead her into telling you all about the wonders of Metropolis, or places that she's visited, books that she'd recommend etc; that'll keep the conversation flowing and it'll put both of you at ease."

He nodded and shuddered lightly "This is worse than a blind date."

"Not really, this woman has paid quite a bit of money just to score a date with you, so you don't have to worry that she's going to find a way to ditch you." Lois reminded him readily.

"There is that." He groused good natured, before rolling them over and cupping her cheek in his palm "If you're ever auctioned off, I'm the only man allowed to bid."

"You don't wanna pay me back in kind, or try and get rid of me for conning you into doing this in the first place."

He shook his head slowly "Nope, I know that everything that you, mom and Chloe said about women, and how they regard the men of the Justice League was the truth. You didn't con us, just pandered to our egos to get us to agree." She smiled abashed "Besides, even though we were all uncomfortable about doing it, if we were totally against the idea, nothing any of you said would have changed our minds." Leaning down he pressed his lips to her cheek "It was for a good cause and mom raised a goodly amount of money, so that's what matters."

She nodded in agreement "That's what we thought, but if any of you had been against the idea, we really would have understood."

"We know that too." He replied softly "But as for trying to get rid of you; never. I'm holding tight to you babe, and I'm not letting anyone else have a look in; not even for a business transaction."

"Remember how you said that I sounded like a pimp?" He nodded, she grinned in return "Well calling it a business transaction makes us both sound like hookers."

He chuckled lightly in reply "I'm ok with that as long as we're each other's only clients."

She giggled, leant up and whispered in his ear "Well sir, is there anything special that you'd like Lolo to do for you?"

Clark snickered, settled himself more comfortably and grinned "As a matter of fact...."

At the sound of laughter, Fred lifted his head, and huffed out a soft sigh, before lying back down and going to sleep.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

_Two weeks later_

Clark felt inordinately pleased as his eyes swept over the table in approval. Everything was perfect. The pancakes were warm, the bacon hot and crispy, the eggs fluffy and scrambled. The juice was the kind Lois liked; 5 percent orange juice, 95 percent additives and preservatives. The jam, butter and toast were set out, with croissants on the side if she preferred.

He'd decorated the table with a pale yellow linen and lace tablecloth, the silverware gleamed in the morning light, and the chinaware looked beautiful. He'd pulled out all the stops and all her best tableware to serve a romantic breakfast for two.

He looked at the flowers and shrugged, ok they weren't the classic romantic bud vase with a single rose, but he thought they looked nice. Catching a slight movement from the corner of his eye, he turned to find that Fred was sitting up and eyeballing the food "Forget it boy, you've already eaten."

The mutt whined, and began to trot off to his place by the back door, but at the sound of Lois' footsteps coming down the hallway; he turned to stand beside Clark with his tail happily wagging.

***

Lois walked into the kitchen to find her boyfriend beaming at her, Fred standing beside him, then sitting, then standing again with his tail wagging all the while, and grinned in return. When Clark stepped aside, she saw the huge vase of deep red roses that were placed in the centre of the dining table and felt her smile grow "They're beautiful."

"Happy Birthday Lois" Clark called out cheerfully, before stepping forward to scoop her into his arms and hug her tight. Letting go, he kept one arm around her waist and ushered her forward "I made breakfast."

Her eyes ran over the table setting, trailed over all the food that had been set out, and back to the flowers "You usually make breakfast on the weekends, but this is...wow." Turning she smiled at him and shook her head "This looks too fancy to spoil."

He grinned, held her chair out, and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, before picking up the vase and moving the flowers to the end of the table. Snagging a piece of bacon, Lois munched then cocked her brow when Fred slinked over and sniffed "Has he been fed?"

"Yeah, he's just being greedy." Clark pointed to the door "Go on Fred, she'll greet you after she's eaten."

The dog looked between the two, and began to turn away but at Lois' call swung back around. He grasped the pancake she held out with his teeth, gave her the doggy equivalent of a smile and trotted over to lie down beside the back door to enjoy his treat.

Lois looked up, saw Clark's amused expression and shrugged ruefully "I couldn't help it, he looked so pathetic."

"That's just how he cons you." After pouring them both a glass of orange juice, he took the seat opposite her, and the two proceeded to enjoy their breakfast in companionable silence.

Sitting back replete, Lois sipped at the juice "My friends will be over about lunchtime...." She stopped when he nodded knowingly.

"I know Lo, I've gotten used to the routine." At her lifted brows, he grinned "On the Saturday following one of your friend's birthdays, all the girls get together for a few hours, leaving the men to their own devices, and/or to look after the kids. As today is Saturday, I was expecting your girlfriends to be coming over."

She wrinkled her nose "You're welcome to join us...."

"Thanks Lo but I have lots of things to do today, lots and lots." He cut in quickly.

"You mean you can find lots of things, that won't require you to be surrounded by a house full of women." She asked with twitching lips.

"I'm just really busy with stuff to do." He informed her snootily. Before she could question what he had to do, he pushed back his chair and began to clear the table. Lois laughed lightly, helped him to clear up and within minutes the kitchen and dining area was spotless.

"Do you want a cup of coffee babe?"

"Please."

Leaning one hip against the island, she turned to look at the roses once again sitting pride of place in the centre of the table, before turning to smile at him "The flowers are really beautiful Clark, thank you."

He bobbed his head, and looked out the window above the sink "Now that summers well over, your garden looks totally different."

"Yeah, when the leaves changed colours and dropped it was still beautiful, and Fred certainly enjoyed jumping into the piles we'd raked up, but now the yards looking a little bare." She shrugged casually, and turned to look outside the glass door "But that's just the circle, and each seasons striking in its own way."

"What's your favourite?"

"Spring, I love seeing blossom trees everywhere." She bobbed her head in thanks for the mug he held out, before looking outside once again and sighing heavily "I know it happened years ago, but with each birthday I'm reminded all the more that I've well and truly left spring behind, and am now in the summer of my life."

Hearing the tone, Clark stepped from behind the island, took the mug from her hand, put it down, and turning her around, slipped an arm around her waist "Do you know that when I first saw you in the restaurant, I thought that you had grown more beautiful with age. At 20 you were pretty; but now you're captivating, alluring and stunning." Cupping her cheek in his free hand, he leant forward and pressed his lips to hers. Lifting his head, he smiled "Even though 20's a great age to be at the time, would you really want to be that again?"

She shook her head "Oh god no."

"Neither would I. At 20 you're just starting out, so the worlds your oyster and anything's possible, but you've come a long way since then. You're no longer a girl deciding what path to take in life; that's been left behind for a woman who's found her niche. In some respects you're the same person I knew years ago, but in others you're completely different. You have a lot to be proud of Lo."

"I am, it's just that now I'm 36, which is the turning toward the dark side of 40 and..." She blew out a soft breath "40, how did that happen?"

He smiled and pecked his lips to the tip of her nose "You're getting ahead of yourself babe. You still have 4 years before that time, and I'm sure by then you'll be even more bewitching, and I'll have even more to be proud of you for."

"You think we'll still be together in four years?" She asked lightly.

He nodded firmly "I think we'll still be together when we're 90."

"You'll either be 89 or I'll be 91; we won't be 90 at the same time." She corrected before ruminating out loud "I've never had a boyfriend younger than me."

"I'm only one year younger Lo." He reminded her amused.

"Yeah but still, maybe you should go away and come back when I'm 45; I might be looking for a toy boy about then." She teased and slipped her hands down to squeeze his butt.

"Well I can do that, or we can stay together now and you can be my toy girl." At her lifted brows "Strictly speaking I'm actually a lot older than you."

"How so?"

"Well don't forget that it can take hundreds of years, and in some cases, tens of thousands of years for light from some stars in our own galaxy to reach Earth. So when we look up at the stars we're actually looking back in time, because some of those stars have long since died by the time their light has reached us here." She smiled in understanding, he grinned and continued "I was born on Krypton and put in the spaceship as a baby. Now it did protect me to some extent from ageing but not completely, since I was about 4 by the time I arrived here on Earth. By then Krypton was long gone, having exploded hundreds or even thousands of years beforehand, which means that technically I'm at least a few hundred years old, if not more." He finished and gave her butt a squeeze in return.

"Why you cradle robbing dirty old man." Lois snorted out a laugh.

He continued to smile undaunted "So which scenario do you prefer?"

"Well you've certainly given me a new perspective, but I think I'll stick with the one where I'm older than you." Pressing her lips to his cheek, she smiled "Thank you."

He bobbed his head, picked up her mug and handed it to her "You're welcome, but you're not old baby, not even by human standards."

"What you said before was true for you too. You've changed and grown a lot from the boy I knew in Smallville, and it's not just because of your super-persona." She grinned and cocked her head "Back then you weren't my type any more than I was yours, so I guess some things aren't so bad with age."

"A lot of things are much better now that I'm older. I spent my formative years pursuing Lana; most of my 20's married to her, so trust me when I say that I'm now glad to be in my 30's."

"It was a new chapter in your life."

"No." He corrected softly "A whole new book; and it got better still when I was sitting in a restaurant seven months ago, and found you again." She shook her head smiling at his words. He raced to the bedroom and came back with her gift in hand "Happy Birthday again Lo."

She put the mug down, and took the proffered box with a light frown on her face "Thank you, but you already gave me the flowers."

Clark trailed a finger down her cheek and smiled tenderly "I give you flowers all the time; I wanted you to have something that will last."

Lois pulled off the ribbon and paper, opened the box and gasped. Her fingertip trailed over the gold necklace, and glossed over the simple diamond dangling from the centre before her eyes lifted to his "It's beautiful."

He took out the necklace and clasped it around her neck "Now it's beautiful."

Lois lifted her hand, felt the diamond sitting in the hollow of her throat and stepping forward hugged Clark hard "Thank you."

He hugged her back, and when her head titled up, his tilted down and their lips met. Coming up for air a few minutes later, lashes fluttered up and eyes smiled into each other's. He picked up her hand, and pressed a kiss to her fingertips "I have mom and Chloe's gifts for you as well, do you want them now?"

"No, what I want now is 6 foot 5 and standing right in front of me." She told him softly and lifting up on her toes, pressed her lips to his once again.

***

At the ringing off the doorbell, Lois quickly swept her eyes around the kitchen/family area before heading to the front of the house.

She'd no sooner pulled the front door open than "Happy birthday." Her friends called out simultaneously, before surging forward into the house to hug and kiss her.

"Thanks." She smiled, closed the door and took the pastry box that was held out, sweeping out her arm in welcome "C'mon in; the drinks and snacks have just been set out so we're ready to go."

The women trooped into the kitchen, and made themselves comfortable at the table, where a number of platters were set in the centre with a selection of hot and cold eats.

"Where are the guys?" Annette asked affably.

"Well Fred's playing with his toy in the backyard, and Clark's disappeared." She broke off to snigger lightly "You should have heard him. When I told him this morning that he was welcome to join us, he almost tripped over his tongue telling me how busy he was with lots of things to do." She noted that her friends were snickering and grinned wider "He didn't actually tell me what he had to do, just that he was busy."

"My husband says that he loves us all, but he'd prefer not to be the sole male in a house full of women, so he's quite happy to take himself off for a few hours." Trish grinned and reached for a canapé.

"At least your husband is somewhat graceful; mines about as subtle as Clark." Julie chuckled lightly "Every year on my birthday just before lunch time, Dwayne mutters something about making himself scarce and all but runs out the door."

The women all chuckled, and exchanged tales of the various antics and excuses their husbands had likewise subjected them to, in an effort to not be stuck alone with all of them. Shaking her head lightly in laughter, Lois trod over to the fridge and put the cake away before making her way back to her friends. Grabbing a bottle of wine from the table, she popped it open and began to pour "Some of you didn't know us then, but it was actually Frank who put a stop to us getting together for dinner." She looked at her friend and wiggled her brows "Remember Carl, he put his foot down and said that we could celebrate to our hearts content, as long as we left the night time hours for him."

"Yep, we'd been dating for 5 months and the girls had organised a dinner as usual, but Frank said that he wanted to spend my birthday night with me. I couldn't disagree with him because even though I love my friends, it was Frank who did then and even now still gives me the big happy." Carly finished with a laugh and took a sip of wine.

The women chortled, and waved their hands in support of their own husbands, before grabbing plates and helping themselves to a selection of the food set out.

Feeling comfortably full 30 minutes later, Lois sent a quick look around the table "Who wants another glass of wine?" Seven empty glasses were waved eagerly.

After fetching a fresh bottle, she returned to find a pile of presents sitting on the table beside her place, and while Carly poured, Lois opened, grinning in delight at each of the gifts she'd received.

"These are all beautiful, thank you." Reaching for her glass, she took a sip turning at the question that was next asked.

"So what'd Clark get you?"

She smiled hugely and pointed to the coffee table on which sat the vase of roses "I walked into the room this morning and found that he'd made me breakfast." She broke off and confessed "Actually he usually makes breakfast on the weekends, but this time he pulled out all the stops. The table was all romantic with the best china and silverware, the vase of roses was sitting in the centre, and he got me this..." She pulled down the neckline of her shirt, enjoying their reactions of round eyed surprise and sighs of 'ooh'. She turned her upper torso this way and that showing it off to all "It's stunning isn't it?"

"Oh sweetie, it's gorgeous." Carly leant forward for a good peek then sat back "The man is plain crazy about you y'know?" She asked rhetorically with a sidelong smile at the women grouped around, all of whom nodded in accord.

Lois flushed lightly and shrugged "I'm crazy about him and it scares me. I wasn't intending to get involved again but now..."

Julie reached over and patted her hand "I know but none of us have seen you this happy in a long time, so we're all glad that you met Clark again."

She let out a soft breath and nodded "Me too."

Hoping to change the subject slightly enough, without letting Lois realise that she was actually keeping to the point in a bid to make her friend see what they all knew without scaring her off; Carly tapped her fingernail lightly on her glass to gain attention.

"Ok Lo, so I have a question for you." Having gained everyone's attention, she continued cheerfully "Now that you've met a number of men from the JLA, which one's your favourite?"

"Well..." Lois drawled meaningfully.

"Uh huh, no more dithering, you've kissed Cyborg..."

"Flirted with Flash." Trish joined in chuckling.

"Pointed out how hot Batman is." Sandra almost sung.

"And have been saved by Superman more than once." Sharlene reminded them all.

"Who's your favourite; pick!" Carly finished with a grin.

Lois flashed a smile all round, sipped her drink, tapped her chin lightly and ended by shaking her head sadly "See that's the entire problem. They're all charming, gorgeous and sexy, but as I'm not interested in being with them in reality, why restrict myself to only one when I can continue to fancy them all."

The women looked at each other and nodded "You know, she has a very good point." Shelley put in dryly then turned and eagerly asked "So what was kissing Cyborg like?"

Her lips lifted in a half smile "Very nice."

"Clark didn't mind?"

"Nah, he knew I was just putting on a show for the auction so he was fine."

"Does he mind what the media imply about you and Superman?" Carly asked quietly.

"Nope, when my squabble with Superman first hit the news he was pissed off, and although he didn't believe it, he was upset enough to come here and find out what was going on, but that was resolved really quickly as you know." They all nodded, she smiled "Well he's said more than once that he'd trust me, before he'd ever trust a bunch of media hacks that'll spin a story just to make good copy."

"He's one of those hacks." Sandra reminded her friend with a light chuckle.

"And that's exactly why." She laughed in return "Clark's one of the rare breed of Journalists who doesn't do that, but he's well aware that a lot of them do." Her lips lifted in a crooked half smile "The press have cooled down about me and Superman thank god, but until he gets a girlfriend it won't completely die. So let's just hope that I never need his help again, or I imagine the innuendo will start up once more."

"Well Clark seems secure enough in himself, and in your relationship to not care what the press says. I mean if he was going to break up with you over tabloid trash, it would have happened months ago, but it didn't appear to bother him at all really." Carly commented casually.

"It didn't and he is." Lois smiled slightly "He said the two of us know whose girlfriend I am, so who the hell cares what the world thinks."

The women's smiles all grew "I think you've got a winner there Lo." Carly finished serenely but deliberately before taking a sip of wine.

She rolled her eyes lightly, but couldn't stop the flush from hitting her cheeks once again "I don't even know how it happened. Our relationship was supposed to be short lived and only about sex but now..." She trailed off to take a sip of her drink, and missed the conspirational looks flying between her friends. Putting down her glass, she stood and excused herself "I'm just going to the bathroom and will be back soon ok?"

Once she was gone and very much out of hearing, the women turned to each other and began to talk softly.

"She might have thought it was about sex, but I guarantee that he never intended to leave it at that." Carly informed her friends "We were there the night Clark saw her at the restaurant; and the way he was looking at Lois was scorching." She turned to the two ladies who had also been there "Didn't you think so?"

"Oh yeah, and it wasn't all desire." Sharlene shook her head "Not even close."

"Not even. We were all watching when Lo went with her cousin to greet the men at their table. Well Clark stayed politely in the background until it was his turn, but I doubt that his eyes ever shifted from her while waiting for her to notice him." Trish sipped her drink and shook her head lightly "Abra and I tried to describe the expression on his face, but we couldn't quite decide. I said that he looked like someone who'd taken a hard punch to solar plexus; she said that he looked like he wanted to devour Lo on sight."

"It was both." Carly sighed heartily and leaning in closer, swept all the women up in her gaze "His face was a combination of both. When he looked over at our table after sending over the champagne, he was focused entirely on Lois and the look in his eyes...." She shivered lightly "...holy moly."

Sandra beamed with delight "They've been together for months now, and yet I've still caught him looking at her like that on occasion. I couldn't describe it before but that's it exactly." She turned to her friends and nodded firmly "I agree with you Carl, I don't think he was going to be satisfied with restricting their relationship to sex."

"Well I know that you're right because Clark told me that he was going to marry Lo, and that was only 6 weeks after they started dating." Julie divulged secretly "Don't say anything because he told me not to, but I've been dying to share that nugget for months."

"It doesn't surprise me; I knew that he was in love with her when I met him at your barbeque." Shelley whispered back with a big smile.

"I think we all knew that night." Annette put in quietly "I think he's very slowly reeling Lois in, without doing anything to frighten her off." They all nodded in accord "And I for one have no intention of telling her what he's doing, because I'm on his side."

"I'm willing to help his cause, and promote him to Lois, as long as he doesn't hurt her." Carly put in firmly.

"I already warned him that if he did, there'd be a long line of people waiting to give him what for." Julie informed the ladies.

"He's already fallen, whereas Lois either hasn't, or has but doesn't realise it yet. So if it doesn't work out, I think he'll be harder hit, and although she'll feel it, it'll be worse when she realises that she does loves him. However, I don't believe we need to worry about that." Trish smiled ruefully "Actually, I stopped worrying about that shortly after meeting him. Firstly, I don't think that Clark will let her go easily, but more importantly the longer I've known him, and the more I've see him with Lo, the more I'm convinced that she's finally met the right man."

They all smiled at each other, nodded, clinked glasses and sipped.

Hearing Lois' footsteps coming down the hallway, Carly drained her glass, picked up a fresh bottle of wine and called out casually "Who wants a refill?"

***

Clark looked at his watch, saw that it was just on 7, which meant 4 in Seattle and hoped that he'd given Lois' friends ample time to enjoy their girly bonding time. He liked her friends, but had been more than happy to beat a hasty retreat rather than being stuck with them en masse. He'd spent a few productive hours doing farm chores, after which he'd spent the time visiting with his mom, before coming back to his apartment to give the place a good clean. Relaxing back into the couch, he grabbed the cell-phone, pressed automatic dial, waited patiently for the line to be picked up, and smiled at the click of the receiver.

"Helloooo."

At the sing song tone, his brows flew up "Who's this?"

"Who's this?"

"Clark."

"We were talking about you before."

"Were you now?"

"Uh huh, we all like you."

"Um, thank you; who am I talking to?"

"Carly;" came the giggling response "Lo told us about the romantic breakfast you made, and we love the flowers and necklace you gave her."

"Thanks again. Is she there by any chance?"

"Yup." She giggled, he heard a voice in the background asking who wanted more wine; she called back "I do" And promptly hung up.

Hearing the dial tone, he shook his head, punched in Lois' number but at the engaged signal, sighed and rang her cell; then rang twice more before it was picked up.

"Hello." Lois trilled chirpily.

His lips tilted upward; his girlfriend sounded half snookered just as Carly had before her "Hi Lo it's me."

"We were talking about you before."

"So I heard."

Lois noted that her friends were too busy chatting to pay her any mind, and whispered loudly "You heard us talking all the way in Smallville?"

"No Lo I'm in Metropolis and..." He began to explain, only to get cut off.

"Wow, you can hear us in Metropolis with all the city sounds and stuff around you; that's _**amazing**_?" She paused, then suggested "I'll put the phone down, go to the other side of the room and when I whisper something, you tell me what I said; ok?"

"No Lo..." Since there was no answer he waited patiently; a minute later she was back and asking eagerly "So what'd I say?"

"I don't know."

"You couldn't hear me?"

What he could hear clearly was the disappointment in her voice and rubbed his eyes "I didn't try but...." When she suggested doing it again, he quickly cut in "Babe, I didn't hear all of you talking before. What I meant was that I called before, and Carly told me that you had all been talking about me."

"Oh, so you didn't hear us in Metropolis." She clarified slowly.

"No."

"Did you hear us in Smallville?" She asked hopefully.

"No." He replied, rolling his eyes to the ceiling.

"Hmph; so why'd you ring Carly?"

"I rang to talk to you, but she hung up on me." Clark replied patiently.

"Well she might have been wondering why you called her; after all you are supposed to be my boyfriend and she is happily married."

"Baby, how many drinks have you had?"

"Only a couple."

"A couple of hundred more like." He muttered, but not soft enough that she didn't hear.

"It's my birthday." Lois yowled indignantly.

He quickly pulled the phone away, rubbed his ear and sighed before putting the receiver back once again "Lo I'm taking you out for dinner tonight, and I'd like you to be relatively sober before we leave, so how about cutting back on the drinks for now."

"You didn't tell me that..." She turned away and called out loudly "...Clark's taking me out for dinner."

"That's cause he's sweet on you Lo." A voice called in the background.

"Are you sweet on me?" Lois asked in a girly voice.

"Yep." He grinned, completely charmed by her manner "And I'll be sweeter still if you're not drunk by the time I get back."

"I'm not drunk just happy..." She paused for a moment "Ok, I'm a little past happy, and heading towards feeling a nice buzz."

"Well how about holding back the buzz until after dinner, and then you can be as drunk as you want."

"Why?"

"So that when we get home afterwards, I can take advantage of you."

"You can." She giggled lightly "You wanna know what I whispered."

"What?"

"I think you're cute."

"Oh I think it's safe to say that you're the one who's cute right now." He laughed and shook his head "So how much longer will it be before its safe for me to come back?"

"Hmm, well the girls are getting ready to leave now."

His lips twitched "Well I'll give the girls some time to leave, and be there soon ok?"

"Ok, but see Fred's tummy is full from the leftovers so he's snoozing by the back door, and..." She paused for a beat and quickly rushed on "...but don't worry, I saved you some."

"You saved me some; does that mean I get the scraps that Fred didn't want?" He asked politely.

Lois chortled out loud "No silly, I put some aside for you. Anyway, I was thinking that having a nap sounds like a good idea, but you have keys so just let yourself in and I'll see you later; bye."

At the sound of the dial tone in his ear, Clark clicked off the phone and shook his head amused. He knew that Lois could be abrupt, but that was ridiculous. Letting out a shout of laughter, he looked around the apartment, and his felt his smile grow wider in satisfaction.

He didn't spend much time here anymore. He only came to the apartment now because he knew that if he didn't that would invite comment, but only stuck around long enough to show his face. The other tenants occasionally saw him leaving for work, returning from work or picking up his mail. He waved and smiled, passed the time of day, but none of them knew his pretence of living there was only an act for their benefit. They had no idea that when he left for work in the morning, that he'd only just arrived through his apartment window minutes before. Nor that once the front door was closed at his back at night that he was already gone; flying out the window and heading back to Seattle. He only slept here now when Lois came for the weekend.

He'd told Lois that he was only thinking of staying with her for one or two nights during the week so they could see each other more. However, that arrangement hadn't lasted for long; he'd made sure of that.

The first week he'd left on the Monday morning as usual, but returned to stay with her on the Tuesday night. The second week he turned up at her place on the Tuesday and the Wednesday nights, the third week he added the Thursday, and on the fourth week he once again left on the Monday morning, but returned that night and every night thereafter. By then he was staying with her seven days a week, and had managed to sneakily make himself very comfortable without being called on it.

Lois had worried they'd end up living together; he of course had lied through his teeth and said that wouldn't happen, but she'd either let him get away with it, or liked the arrangement so didn't bother making a fuss. He liked to think it was both. When she gave him a set of keys to the house, he even didn't bother putting up a false show of token protest; instead he'd thanked her in a way that left both of them breathless.

Taking a quick look at his watch, he noted that 20 minutes had passed and hoped that he'd given the women enough time to make their departure. Standing he spun into the suit, shot out the window and zoomed towards Seattle. Unfortunately a Superman call derailed his plans, and it was almost another 30 minutes before he could get away.

Stopping above the house, he x-rayed down to find the place was empty of females bar Lois, and after checking the neighbourhood carefully, zipped down to land in the gazebo.

He grinned at seeing Fred curled up fast asleep in his usual spot by the back door. Unlocking and sliding the door across, he floated in and over the mutt, closed it quickly to shut the cold outside, and turned to turn find Lois likewise curled up on the couch.

He quickly moved out of range, spun out of the suit and into his clothes, before returning to grab the remote, turn on the TV and took a seat on the couch with Lois' feet resting in his lap.

***

Lois yawned, opened her eyes to smile sleepily at Clark and stretched lazily "When did you get back?"

"About 40 minutes ago; did you have a nice time with your friends?"

"Uh huh; did you have the snacks, and cake that I saved you?"

"I didn't feel like it before, but wouldn't mind some cake now." When she swung her feet off his lap and sat up, he grinned "I'll get it Lo, you might not be sober enough to use a knife?"

"I was just tipsy." She retorted rapidly before admitting sheepishly "I still feel a little lightheaded but otherwise fine."

After switching off the TV, Clark pushed up from the couch and stepped towards the kitchen area to switch on the kettle. He opened the fridge to retrieve the cake, and turned around to find Fred sitting up and staring "Forget it buddy this is mine." He looked at his girlfriend, and determinedly ignored the dog's pleading eyes "Do you want some babe?"

"No thanks I've had enough, but I will have some coffee."

He nodded, cut a generous portion of cake, and slipped it onto a plate before stepping to the sink to wash the knife. At a movement from the corner of his eye, he turned and warned "Don't even think about it Fred."

Lois sniggered at the dog's soft whine, looked between man and beast, and shook her head at the realisation the two males were locked in some kind of pissing contest "Um...Clark, you do realise that you're trying to out stare a dog right?"

"Mmmm." He nodded but his eyes never moved.

"He's a dog Clark."

"He's trying to get some of my cake Lo."

"But he's a _dog_." She repeated, stressing the last word.

Clark smirked when Fred gave up with a small huff, trotted over to Lois, planted his rump on the ground, his head in her lap and continued to gaze at him soulfully.

Turning to smile smugly at his girlfriend Clark decided it was time to share some male insight "You see Lo, because you give into Fred's blandishments, he's well aware that you're just a big sucker that can't resist him. However, being a man **I** understand that it's a matter of showing the _dog_ whose boss. He knows that with me he's not going to win, but he tries it on anyway."

She nodded minutely, smiling in thanks for the mug of coffee "I see, so it's really just a way of showing Fred that you're the alpha male in the house."

"Exactly." He replied glad that she understood.

"Maybe I should be tougher and show him whose boss too?" She asked thoughtfully.

"It's far too late for you babe, he knows that you're a big softie." Taking a seat beside her, he put his mug on the table, scooped up a piece of cake and began to enjoy.

When Fred abandoned her to sit beside Clark, Lois sipped her coffee, watching as the dog kept licking his chops while his beseeching eyes remained steady on her boyfriend. Maybe she could take some lessons from him and learn how to be heartless...um tough as well.

"Oh for god's sakes Fred; here!" Clark ground out in exasperation, and put the plate on the ground.

Maybe he wasn't the one to teach her after all, she ruminated silently.

He looked at his girlfriend from the corner of his eye, and held up one finger in warning "Don't say it."

Lois buried her nose in her cup, but he heard the soft snort.

"I wasn't hungry."

She nodded but didn't respond.

"I don't need to eat."

She nodded again.

"All I need is the sun for sustenance; food is not a big deal." She nodded for a third time.

When Fred was finished and looked up at them with bits of cake on his nose and muzzle then proceeded to swipe his tongue up, around and over determined to lick off every last bit, Clark turned to Lois and held out a hand in appeal "How can anyone resist that face?"

She leant over, smacked a kiss on his cheek and grinned "They can't."

"He's the only one who always has a full tummy in this house." Hooking an arm around her waist, he smiled and whispered in her ear "I'll have another piece tonight when he's in bed." At her cocked brow, he amended "No I'll it have it tonight while I'm in bed, the only safe place to eat is in our bedroom."

"He'll hear you eating and scratch at the door." She whispered back.

"Then I'll fly up into the sky and have it there." When she giggled, he sighed "I'm still the alpha male."

"Of course you are." She nodded firmly, and pecked his lips.

Turning, he patted the mutt on the head "It's ok boy, you can have the cake, I've got something better." Taking the mug out of her and setting it on the coffee table beside his, Clark wrapped his arms around Lois waist, pressed her back against the couch and claimed her lips with his.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

_One week later_

At the ringing of the bell, Lois slipped out of bed quietly, pulled on a robe and padded to the front door. She was surprised that Clark hadn't heard it, but considering the poor guy had been run ragged for 36 hours before finally succumbing to exhaustion, it wasn't surprising. Then again, exhaustion hadn't stopped him from getting her naked and into bed with him, prior to falling asleep with a smile on his face.

She swung around to look back down the hallway and muttered 'hmmm'. With a light laugh, she turned and headed to the front door once again. At least she could say that her boyfriend never left her in any doubt that he found her attractive.

She pulled open the door with a polite social smile of welcome on her face, which was swiftly replaced by genuine delight "Daddy" Lois cried and stepped forward into his arms.

General Lane grinned, and hugged his daughter hard before smacking a kiss on the side of her head. Letting her go, he bent down to retrieve his bag, missing the look Lois threw in the direction of the bedroom before whipping back round.

She stepped back, held the door open wider ushering her father inside, and had no sooner closed it than began rushing into speech "I was just about to have a shower, but I can do that later. You know where everything is, so just make yourself at home while I'm getting dressed." She paused for a beat before barrelling on "Actually, why don't you get yourself a drink, then go outside to say hello to Fred, and I'll join you in a few minutes, ok?"

Sam Lane had long since gotten used to his daughters manic way of talking, but her fluttering hands was a new one "Have I come at a bad time?"

"No of course not, I was just lying down." Lois waved airily.

"I thought you were going to have a shower."

"Well I was after my lie down, but now I'm just going to get dressed."

"Why did you get undressed just to lie down?"

She felt the flush creep up her neck and silently groaned "That was for my shower...." She cleared her throat "I mean I got undressed to have a sleep, then I woke up and was going to have a shower, but now I'm not."

Deciding it was time to spare his little girl, he nodded genially "I'll just get myself a drink."

"Ok." She replied and with a relieved smile, all but ran back to the bedroom.

General Lane was no one's fool, if his daughter had taken to having naps in the afternoon it was only because someone was taking them with her. He didn't know who the man was that was making time with his daughter, but his intentions had better be honourable, and he'd better come out and face his little girl's father.

Leaving his bag in the hallway, he strode to the lounge room, directly to the drinks cabinet and poured himself a scotch, before making his way outside to greet Fred. If the man who was with his daughter had met the dog, and had come away from the encounter with his hide intact then he couldn't be all bad; but he'd wait and see.

***

Lois rushed into the bedroom, closed the door and shook Clark's shoulder "Wake up."

He groaned and pressed his face harder into the pillow.

"You have to get up."

He opened one blurry eye, smiled lazily and held out his hand "You get that robe off and come back to bed."

"Clark..." He tugged her down, snuggled around her, and began to tug open her robe, chuckling lightly when she smacked his hands "...my dad's here."

He murmured against her neck, before shooting straight up, almost causing her to roll of the mattress at his momentum. Diving quickly he grabbed her around the waist, and just as rapidly yanked his arms away as if scorched "Your dad!?"

"Yes, so have a shower, get dressed and come in through the front door in about 15 minutes." Lois whispered quickly.

He reached for the pants at the end of the bed; she grabbed them from him and pointed "Shower first."

"But…."

"Clark, it's my dad. If you don't have a shower, he'll smell the sex that's coming off you in waves through the fumes of your nervous sweat, now shower." He nodded, dashed into the bathroom and came out a minute later "You need one too."

"I know but I'm not fast like you....oh screw it, I've gotta have one." She tugged off her robe and rushed into the en-suite.

He followed, pulled the shower door open and stuck his head in "Should I come back with something?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know bread, milk, anything that'll make him believe that I wasn't here, while you were lounging around in a robe at 3 o'clock in the afternoon."

"Yeah, yeah anything now go!"

Nodding, he hastened back into the bedroom, and began to dash around grabbing fresh clothes from the cupboards and drawers, before flinging them on. Once dressed, he sped through the house, stepped outside the back door, and came to a halt at the cough from the side. Turning slowly, he found Lois' father comfortably ensconced on one of the chairs in the gazebo, or to be more precise, the only chair that was conveniently out of view from the back door and wondered if the man had deliberately picked that seat. He'd barely finished the thought before scoffing; of course he did Clark, the man's a General, he knows all about tactics and catching the enemy of guard.

Why, why, why didn't he use his x-ray vision to search the house before stepping outside? Oh, that's right, it's because you were so busy trying to be sneaky, that you didn't think; good one Clark! You didn't want General Lane to know that you'd been doing his daughter less than an hour ago, so were hoping to avoid meeting him until it looked like you hadn't been doing, what he clearly knows you have. He should have snuck out the front door, he should have flown out the window; he should have stayed hidden in the bedroom. Wincing internally at the last word, and feeling the heat gather in his face; he smiled.

General Lane rose to his feet and stepped forward. He looked the man up and down, narrowed his eyes and frowned. He knew this man; he'd seen him before, but where?

Clark cleared his throat and stuck out his hand "Hello sir."

Sam took the proffered hand, gave it a hearty shake and had to give the man kudos for guts. He was nervous but at least he wasn't turning tail and running "Hello." Letting go, he swept his eyes up and down once again before locking their eyes "What's your name son?"

"Clark...." He broke off and coughed lightly "Clark Kent; we met a long time ago sir."

"Kent." Sam frowned and pursed his lips "Kent, my daughter used to know a family by that name."

"That was my family sir; Lo...I mean Lois lived with my family for a little while years ago."

Sam frowned a little more, and nodded lightly before his eyebrows shot up "Are you that scrawny kid I met way back when?"

"Um yeah, but I've grown up since then."

"Hmmm."

"Hey Fred." Feeling grateful the mutt had continued to nudge until gaining his attention, Clark looked down, blew out a soft breath and patted the dog, before looking up again.

"He seems quite comfortable with you." Sam remarked casually.

He flushed and nodded "Yeah I...well he's gotten used to me."

"Has he now." Nodding his head Sam tucked that nugget away, noted the dog was sitting beside Clark, and smiled internally.

Lois rushed through the kitchen, saw the two of them talking and quickly stepped outside "Sorry daddy, I thought I'd have a quick shower after all." She turned and flared her eyes at Clark, before smiling at both men "It's a bit colder out here than I realised, so let's go inside huh?"

The men and Fred followed her back into the house, and after waving them to get comfortable in the seating area, she smiled once again "Does anyone want some coffee?"

"I'm fine with this." Her dad replied holding up the glass.

"I'll have some Lo." She nodded, retreated to the kitchen area and put the coffee on. While keeping an eye on the men, she moved around making up a tray of snacks, and finally decided that she'd better start the conversational ball "How long are you here for daddy?"

"Only a day, I have a few things to do at the army reserve tomorrow, and then I'm off again just after lunch, but as I was here this afternoon, I thought that I'd stop in and see my little girl."

"Well it's been a while so a day's better than nothing." She smiled in return.

"Mmm, and it seems I picked the right day too." Sam replied blandly, ignoring the dark look his daughter shot at him. Turning to Clark he asked forthright "So if Fred's gotten to know you, then I'm guessing that you're dating my little Lo?"

"Yes sir."

"What are your intentions?"

"Daddy." Lois protested, walking over to place a tray of snacks on the coffee table "Don't pay any attention to him Clark."

As the Generals brows were still raised waiting for an answer, Clark coughed uneasily, shot an uneasy look in his girlfriend's direction and sighed heavily. Now he was in for it. He was trying not to scare Lois off with his intentions, but if he told her father that he was happy to settle for anything less than marriage, the man would be happy to dissect him. And he had a pretty good idea which part of his anatomy would be the first to go.

Sending a genial smile to both, he croaked out "I ah...I only have the best of intentions towards your daughter sir."

Lois smiled, her father didn't.

"Which means what exactly?" Sam asked politely "Your best intentions and mine could be diametrically opposed." He finished, taking a sip of his scotch.

"Daddy, please stop." Lois groaned, carrying over the coffee tray and nodding thanks when Clark pushed the snack tray aside to make room.

"Ok Lo, I know that you're old enough to look after yourself so I won't say anything more." Sam Lane smiling lied.

"Thank you." She returned gratefully, taking a seat on couch beside Clark. She was pleased her dad understood that although she loved him for it, she was old enough to protect herself.

Not fooled for one minute, Clark knew that the General was going to question him again as soon as they were alone; and further had no doubt the man would ensure they had time alone. However, without Lois around he could tell her father the truth, and felt his shoulders relax for the first time since finding out the man had arrived.

"Can you stay for dinner?"

"I was hoping you could put me up for the night." Sam smiled charmingly, before sliding his eyes to Clark and back to his daughter again.

"Of course you can stay." Lois replied promptly "The guest room's always ready."

Clark outwardly smiled and inwardly cringed; now what was he supposed to do? The thought of sleeping with his girlfriend while her father was there, wasn't an enticing prospect. However, if he didn't then he'd just look like a coward. She slept with him while his mom was staying under the same roof, and oh gees....why was it so much harder for a guy?

"So what's for dinner?"

"What'd you feel like?"

"I don't have barbeque very often." Her dad smiled winningly.

She laughed and nodded "Then that's what we're having. It's a little cold out but we can cook outside, and eat inside."

He nodded and turned to the younger man "How are you at cooking a steak?"

"Good sir."

"That's fine, you cook and I'll watch; maybe I can pick your brain and get a few tips on how to cook a good steak."

Nodding and knowing exactly what General Lane was referring to, he smiled gamely.

***

Poking her head outside the door, Lois called out "It's a bit cold guys, do you want some coffee."

"Beer, please." The men returned simultaneously.

Nodding she passed the drinks out, closed the door and busily puttered around, while the men discussed the finer points of barbequing.

After a quick look inside, and noting that his daughter was occupied making a salad, Sam smiled "So, what's your story son; divorced, widowed, single, what?"

Expecting to be questioned the moment they were alone, Clark turned the grill down to low and answered promptly "I'm divorced sir; I have been for over 5 years now."

"Do you have any children?"

"No sir."

"And how long have you been playing hide the salami with my little girl?" General Lane asked bluntly.

Clark coughed out his sip of beer and looked at Sam Lane in trepidation. That hadn't been expected; not the question nor the frankness. He'd never been in this position before, and until now hadn't realised just how easy he'd had it in the past. Lana didn't have a father who'd asked him this stuff; neither had he met any of the fathers of the women he'd enjoyed a casual fling with. OH SHIT! Shit, shit, shit; what was he supposed to say? "Um, I love her sir."

The older man narrowed his eyes "If you hurt her, there won't be any place far enough to hide that I won't find you."

"I promise to look after Lois every day for the rest of my life." He avowed sincerely.

"Talks cheap." Sam returned brusquely.

"Um..." He shook his head and firmed his shoulders "I'm hoping to convince Lo to marry me one day soon."

"And if you can't."

Knowing that he couldn't give the same response to her dad that he had to his friends, Clark looked General Lane in the eye and answered truthfully "Whatever Lois wants is fine with me. I love her sir, and as long as we're together, I'm happy."

Sam nodded slowly "So what are your prospects like; do you own your own house?"

"No sir."

"Do you have any money in the bank?"

"Well I have some and my nest egg is growing." Blowing out a soft breath, Clark swore internally. He couldn't tell the man that for 10 years he'd been a farmer, and although he hadn't gone hungry nor been broke; neither had he made his fortune. Considering he'd been divorced for 5 years since then, that wouldn't be enough to satisfy a man, who only wanted to ensure his daughter wasn't going to be stuck with a deadbeat. Nor could he tell him that he'd been training for three years and didn't get paid for doing that. He'd managed to salt some money away the two years he was travelling, and a little more in the 8 months that he'd been working at the Planet, but he was far from well heeled. Swearing silently once more, he told part of the truth "Unfortunately I wasn't left with much after my divorce."

"You were divorced over five years ago."

_Fuck! He knew it! The man's gonna think his daughters dating a loser._ Deep breath Kent and try again "I know sir, but it took a while for me to get back on my feet."

"Hmm." Nodding Sam left it at that then cocked his head inquisitively "I can remember you a little bit from years ago; so why weren't you interested in my daughter then?"

"Um I…."

"I'm just funning with you son, from what I remember my little Lo would have eaten you alive back then…." He looked Clark up and down then nodded "…but you look like you're up to the task of keeping up with her now."

"I am." He replied confidently.

"Good, Lois is a strong woman who's independent and spirited, and I'm proud of her for that. But a strong woman needs a man with a like fortitude, one that she can depend on; not one of these new age wimps who'll let her push him around." His tone became firm "However, she also needs a man who won't try to stifle her, but will value her for the woman she is."

"I'd never try to smother or change her sir. I love Lois the way she is and I'm damn proud of what she's accomplished." Clark replied honestly "And Lo's not the kind of woman who'll stay in a relationship with anyone who didn't treat her well, or appreciate her."

Sam heard the sincerity in the younger man's voice, and felt his heart glow with pride "No she's not." Lifting his bottle in salute, he smiled "I knew that you were ok when I saw how fond Fred was of you. He likes people, but he's devoted to Lo. So if he's accepted you, then you must be ok."

"Thank you sir."

"I like you Clark, but there is something you need to know." At the younger man's interested head nod "A father never forgets it's his little girl that you're sleeping with, so keep her happy or you can forget about my liking you." Keeping his eyes steady, he smiled pleasantly "You can hurt my daughter's feelings, but I can _injure_ you. So just remember....if you make her cry, I will make YOU cry."

The threat of bodily harm didn't scare him, but the expression in the man's eyes made his hair stand up on end all the same "You don't ever have to worry about that sir."

"No I don't think I do." His smile turned genuine, and slapping the younger man on the back, he invited cheerfully "Call me Sam."

Blowing out a silent sigh of relief, Clark inclined his head and grinned in return "Sam."

After that the two men got down to the business of barbequing while chatting pleasantly about this, that and the other.

***

After dinner was finished, the three retreated to the lounge area, but had no sooner sat down when Clark's attention was snagged by the neighbours TV. While Lois and her dad chatted away, he surreptitiously tugged his glasses down and kept one ear on the conversation beside him, and the other on the news next door.

He wiggled uneasily when the anchor talked about the train wreck just outside of Metropolis. Sighed quietly when the casualty rate came back zero, moved his shoulders restlessly when the number of people who were hurt began to rise, felt relieved when the camera's panned over the area showing the emergency crews were in force. However, when it became obvious that a little super help was needed, he knew it was time to go "Lo, I think we need cereal for breakfast tomorrow, so I'll just make a run to the store and be back soon ok?"

Lois frowned lightly, but when his eyes opened wide, she caught on and nodded "Ok bye."

He rushed out the back door, ensured that no one could see him from inside the house, or the neighbouring yards and zoomed off.

***

Lifting his cup in salute, Sam took a sip of his coffee "I like him."

Her lips tilted up "You mean Clark?" At her dad's nod, she let out a little huff of laughter "You don't say that about many people."

"I have to respect a man who can face his girlfriend's father without whimpering." He grinned in fiendish delight "I've still got it."

She laughed heartily in agreement "You'll always have it."

"Yeah." Sitting back in satisfaction, he smiled "So, how about telling your old dad just how serious this is?"

She shook her head "How about telling me if you're still seeing that nice widow, Mrs Wilson?"

Sam flushed, coughed and nodded "We've been talking about setting up house together."

"Daddy you should." She reached out and picked up his free hand "Mom's been gone for a long time, Mrs Wilson makes you happy, and Lucy and I both like her a lot."

"I do too." He sighed softly "I never thought that I'd find anyone who I wanted to settle down with again, but I have."

"I'm glad." She replied gently.

"So am I; the bigger surprise is that she wants to settle down with me." He ruminated out loud.

"What's surprising about that; you're still handsome and mom fell for your charms." Lois squeezed his hand.

He rolled his eyes lightly "Your mom was in a class all on her own, but it'll be nice having someone to share my twilight years with."

She cut in with a rude snort "Twilight years my foot; I can't see you pottering around the house, happily content growing roses."

He wrinkled his nose and laughed "True; and Alice keeps me on my toes." He sipped his coffee and admitted "She's a lady, the kind you don't find very easily."

"Then you'd better snap her up while the going is good." She supplied cheerfully "Are you thinking of living together or getting married?"

"Married; I'm not into all this living together, free love nonsense." He replied firmly.

Lois smiled and bent over to peck his cheek "Let Lucy and me know when you tie the knot, we'll both want to be there."

He flushed again but nodded "Now, what about you and Clark?"

***

_Two hours later_

When Clark returned, Sam titled his head and asked politely "So where's the cereal?"

Swearing internally for forgetting, he opened his mouth then closed it again before quickly rushing into speech "I remembered that Lois had some so didn't bother getting any."

"Fair enough." Sam replied agreeably.

Clark smiled and had no sooner taken a seat then the older man asked casually "So what took you so long?"

"I...well I..." He looked at Lois for help, she shrugged weakly and turning back to her father, he quickly lied "I was half way to the market when the tire gave out, so I had to change it."

"I didn't hear the car."

"That's because I walked." He supplied quickly, and felt like smacking himself in the head as soon as the words came out of his mouth.

"You walked?" At the glum nod in reply, Sam Lane held back the laughter and asked with a quiver in his voice "So did the tire give out while you were carrying the car home on your back, or did you change the tire at the market and then decide to walk home?" Clark felt the heat turn his face bright red, and knocked Lois' arm lightly with his when she turned away to snigger quietly.

Deciding it was time to put the poor guy out of his misery, Sam shook his head sadly "Son, as Superman you really need to make up lies quicker and better than that."

"I...you know?" Clark groaned and rubbed his face hard with his hands.

"Of course I know; I'm a four star General." Sam replied amused.

"I thought you only had three stars."

"That was a long time ago." He reminded the younger man kindly.

"But how'd you figure it out?"

Lois rolled her eyes lightly, "Clark, a person doesn't become a General by winning a prize in a box of cracker jacks; they do have to be somewhat intelligent."

"Thank you." Sam smiled at his daughter.

Feeling his face burn all the more, Clark cleared his throat "Um yeah, sorry."

Sam inclined his head "It's ok, and before you ask no, I don't think other military people have figured it out, or even spent time wondering if Superman has another identity. They have more than enough on their plate to think about."

"You figured it out." He replied without hesitation.

"Yes, but I'm also Lois' father, so I had a vested interest in the matter." Sam replied truthfully "I was very interested when my daughter appeared to be linked to the man of steel on more than once occasion. I know my Lo, so I knew that most everything she said at that news conference a few months ago was a bunch of bull. The only part I believed was her mention of a boyfriend. However, I was sure that her boyfriend was standing at her side wearing a red cape; and just as important that he wasn't Superman all the time but did have another identity." He tilted his head and smiled "When I saw you today, I knew.

"How?" Clark asked honestly curious.

"Well one, considering this is a big world and there's always some kind of every day thing happening at any given time, I found it mighty coincidental that Superman just happened to show up at the bank which was being robbed while my daughter was there. My daughter who was also the first person he saved, and whom he called his girlfriend." He leant forward and mock whispered "I didn't believe that he just happened to be visiting in the area, nor the Kryptonian meaning for the word." He sat back and got comfortable "The reason I didn't, takes us to point two, which also covers why I believed he had another identity. Superman mentioned that he'd only been on this planet for a short time, yet he talks with an American accent." He smirked at both of them and continued "And three, which I suppose is really one; I knew immediately that you and Superman were the same person when you first came out of the house and saw me. Fred was nudging against you pretty hard, but you didn't even stagger; by the way you really need to be aware of that when others are around. So all in all it didn't take a great mental leap for me to figure it out."

"I usually am careful regarding Fred around others, but seeing you kind of threw me off balance." He shrugged embarrassed; Sam's lips quirked but he nodded in understanding. Clark continued with a light frown "The media made sure people were aware that Superman had been seen in Seattle a lot, and used that to link him with Lo. However, no one mentioned that out of all the crime that's happening around the globe at any given time, that I just happened to be available while Lois was in the middle of a bank robbery. You're also the first person to pick up on the accent."

Hearing the disquiet in the man's voice, Sam sought to ease his worries with a bit of home truth "Son, I'm sure you've found that most people are too taken up with their own lives, to worry overmuch about who Superman really is, or if he even leads another existence. They're just grateful for the help her provides."

"Yeah I have."

The older man inclined his head briefly "I assume that Superman will be there should my daughter ever need him?"

"Yes." Clark replied simply and without hesitation.

"Then the most you'll have to contend with is further innuendo about her being Superman's girlfriend. The media will at times say that one woman or another has caught his eye, but they'll always come back to Lois being 'the one' should Superman need to rescue her in future. However, no one will know that he is Clark Kent, unless you get careless and give them ample evidence proving that you are."

Clark shrugged unconcerned "Well as I have no intention of letting Lois be hurt just to stop speculation about her and Superman, I'll just have to live with whatever they say."

Lois coughed lightly; the men just smiled at each other.

"So you knew that I was Superman when you...." Clark cleared his throat and thumbed outside.

Sam inclined his head politely "Man of steel or not, I'm not going to let anyone think they can hurt my little girl and get away with it scott free."

Letting out a shout of laughter, Clark fell back against the couch cushions "I like you Sam I really do." He grinned and sat forward "How can I not like a man who doesn't care a damn what powers I have, but still threatens me with bodily harm if I hurt his daughter."

"And means it." Sam chimed in.

"And means it." Clark smiled nodding in accord.

"Daddy." Lois chided gently, before letting out a soft giggle "I should have known."

Sam grinned unapologetically "When or if you ever have your own kids, you'll understand that no matter how old they are, they're still yours."

***

_Lying in bed later_

"Daddy's thinking of marrying Alice." At Clark's light frown, Lois rolled her eyes "The widow that he's been seeing."

"Are you ok about that?" He asked quietly.

"Of course, Alice is a lovely woman and she makes him happy." She smiled sincerely "Luce and I were glad when he found her."

Hearing the truth in her voice, he nodded "Then I'm glad too." Switching off the bedside lamp, he snuggled down and got comfortable "Goodnight babe."

Deciding it was time to get a bit of her own back; Lois switched the lamp back on, turned to him and smiled wickedly "So you wanna?"

Clark tensed and shook his head "No, keep your hands to yourself, stay on your side of the bed, and do not for any reason make a sound." He replied low voice before lifting the bedcovers and shaking his head "Don't you have any night clothes that are heavier, and cover you more?"

Her brows rose in amusement "I thought you liked my nightwear?"

"Not when your dad's in the next room."

Lois snickered and slid a little closer to Clark, he moved over, she slid over a little more, he did too. She sat up, slipped one strap off her shoulder, he slid it back up again. She grasped the edges and began to slide the nightdress up, he pointed one shaky finger and whispered fiercely "Don't you dare."

Chortling softly, she started to lie back down, and just as he relaxed, quickly jumped on top of him "He'll never hear us."

"Are you crazy woman?"

"Don't you say the same thing to me about your mom?"

"My mom doesn't carry a gun or lead platoons of soldiers."

"Neither of which can hurt you." She laughed throatily.

"That's not the point."

"What is the point?"

"The point is that he's a General, which means that he probably has the ears of a bat, and I have no intention of letting him think that I can't control myself for one night, while he's in the room across the hall."

"So why'd you stay over then?"

"Because I didn't want him to think that I found his daughter so undesirable, that I had to fly away." When she giggled softly he shot her a dark look "It's not funny Lo, after the inquisition I got while cooking dinner, I wouldn't have been surprised if your dad started barking questions at me if I tried to leave." He shuddered dramatically "I can just hear him yelling at me like I was one of his cadets; 'Kent, why the hell aren't you staying to sleep with my daughter? Do you not find her attractive? You'd better give me the right answer boy, or I'm gonna blow your damn head off'."

She snickered and ruffled his hair "Oh stop exaggerating it couldn't have been that bad. The two of you were smiling before dinner."

"Not that bad?" He snorted incredulous "Let me tell you something. I was expecting to be grilled; I was prepared for just about anything, including being asked if I had a prison record. What I hadn't counted on was your dad asking me how long we've been playing hide the salami."

Lois screamed, Clark slapped his hand over her mouth, and leaning down she pressed her face hard into his neck trying to smother her laughter.

Feeling her body tremble, he smoothed his hands over her back, began to slip them underneath her nightdress, and quickly whipped them out again.

Lifting her head a few minutes later, she wiped her eyes "So you wanna play now?" she asked between giggles.

"No, having your dad say that has put me off ever wanting sex with you ever again."

"Then I guess I'll have to find someone else to play that game with since I enjoy it, and not much puts me off sex." She returned innocently.

He flipped her under him quickly, leant up and shook his head "Oh no you won't, I'm the only man you'll be playing that game with."

"I thought you said..."

"I'm sure that very soon I'll be back to my normal horny self." He cut in cheerfully.

She snorted and grinned "By any chance do you think that'll happen after my dad leaves tomorrow?"

He nodded seriously, while his eyes twinkled merrily "Yep."

"I thought so."

He bent down and kissed her deeply, before lying down and curling around her "Goodnight babe."

"Goodnight." She turned off the light, wiggled closer to him, and smiled quietly when his hand slipped under her nightdress to sit on her tummy.


	26. Chapter 26

Here's the next chapter which I suppose goes well with tonight's episode on Smallville. Although I haven't seen it, I know it was about the Justice League so it's kind of fitting in a way, lol. Thank you for the feedback, it's very much appreciated. Hope you all enjoy this next installment.

Linda

**

**Chapter 26**

_Five weeks later_

It was perfect; he'd been looking at houses for months, and although he'd seen one or two that he liked, nothing had captured his attention immediately like this one had.

Casting his eyes over the house and grounds again, Clark's lips curved upwards. It was beautifully old fashioned and completely homey, with shutters on the windows, flower lined walkways and a big front porch.

Both the back and front yards were large enough they would have plenty of privacy, while the gardens would give Lois sufficient opportunities to potter away to her heart's content.

At the moment the garden was somewhat bare, but he could see that with the amount of trees and flower beds that the yard would be beautiful in all seasons. In spring there'd be blossom trees abundant, summer would have lavish grounds that invited a person to while away the hours in repose, fall would have a saturation of colours all blending together that would be visually stunning; and winter, quiet and restful, as it was now, gearing up for another year. The old fashioned lamp set half up the driveway, which was long and snaked away from the road, completed the charm of the whole setting.

As for the house itself; the rooms were spacious enough that Fred wouldn't feel cramped, while at the same time not so large that he and Lois would feel like they were living in a mansion. His smile grew when he noted the master bedroom was on the opposite side of the house to the other bedrooms. He liked knowing that even with guests they would still have plenty of privacy for themselves. Liked imagining that after retiring for the night they could lie in bed talking quietly, without worrying that anyone could hear them, and he loved the idea that one part of the house was only for them; just them.

He shook his head and amended his last thought; just them and occasionally Fred when the mutt got scared.

If they had kids one day, there were a couple of rooms close enough to the master that could easily be converted to bedrooms. That would still afford them privacy, while allowing them to keep an eagle eye on any offspring they had.

This was their house; this was where he wanted them to live. Now he could only hope that Lois wouldn't only love it as much as he did, but that he could also find a way to coax her into living there with him.

He'd never had a problem flying back and forth to Seattle, since it took him only minutes that wasn't an issue, he'd even seriously considered moving there permanently, unfortunately that wasn't practical at this time. So given that he could only be seen in Seattle as Clark Kent on the weekends and holidays, and he wanted them to live together openly, Lois would have to be the one to move. He wouldn't put it like that of course; he could only imagine the tart response he'd receive in reply, but he could begin by pointing out the two most important ways in which it would be to all their mutual benefit for her and Fred to relocate to Metropolis.

Taking note of the details on the sign, he determined to call and find out what the terms were. Hopefully the owners would be willing to rent it out, with the option to sell in future.

***

Flying towards Seattle several hours later Clark felt enormously pleased; this was turning out to be a good day. After much searching he'd finally found a house that with any luck would soon become their home. Admittedly the rent was a tiny bit steeper than he'd wanted to pay, but nothing he couldn't afford with a little belt tightening. So it looked like he'd soon be moving, well truth be told he'd be living in the house as often as he currently stayed at his apartment, but that was only until he could sweet talk Lois into moving there with him. However, since he couldn't very well cajole her into moving to Metropolis until he actually had a house, and now he did, he felt more than a little cheerful. He'd test the waters tonight.

***

_After Dinner_

Lois put the last of the dishes away, looked over at her guys sitting together on the couch watching TV, and smiled "He can't get enough of you."

Clark stroked the dogs back and nodded "Yeah, ever since I took him for his first flying lesson, he loves me more than his favourite liver baked treats."

When the dog's ears twitched, Lois mock glared at her boyfriend "Now you've done it."

"Do we have any?" He asked alarmed.

She shook her head and smiled apologetically at the mutt "I'll get some tomorrow Freddy." Showing the animal she had nothing by holding out empty hands; Lois wasn't surprised when the dog just huffed, put his head back down and closed his eyes, uninterested in excuses.

When she gave him the 'look', Clark just smiled back unapologetically in return "It's your own fault Lo; you know very well that you should always keeps some around. See, this is exactly why I take Fred flying every night....or at least when I'm not busy and have the time." He finished piously.

Her eyes narrowed "I know that you're dying for me to ask." When he just shrugged, and grinned smugly, she shrugged in return, walked over to take a seat in the facing recliner and relaxed. After a minute she looked at him out of the corner of her eye, and found he was still patting the dog but looking at her with a complacent smile on his face. "Why?" She finally growled.

"It's our guy time together." He replied smoothly "For him it's like sticking his head out the car window, and for me, I've got another guy to complain about you to." At her scowl; he grinned wickedly "But y'know, Fred does bark and yelp, so I'm sure that he's grumbling about you as well; and more than likely it's for times like this when you don't have his favourite treats available."

She laughed, and stuck out her tongue before sighing hugely "You take him for joy flights, and I take him to the vet."

He heard the badly disguised jealously in her voice, reached out to link his fingers with hers and tugged until she was out of her seat and sitting on his lap "He still loves you babe."

"You think?" She asked hopefully.

"Definitely, you're still Fred's number one." He kissed her hair and grinned "You're both our best girl."

She smiled in contentment "Thanks." She began to push herself up, but was halted by Clark's hand tugging her back down. Turning, she looked at him curiously "What's up?"

He picked up the remote with his free hand, and switched of the TV before answering "I've been looking at houses around Metropolis..." At the startled look on her face, he continued blandly "...just seeing what was available. It'd be nice if Fred could come with you the next time you're there."

She cocked her head "You're thinking of moving into a house for Fred?"

He shrugged nonchalant "Partly, he loves being at the farm with all that wide open space, but he can't come to Metropolis because I have an apartment. So I thought that getting a house would solve two problems." Her brow wrinkled slightly, but she nodded encouragingly "One is for Fred. He doesn't like staying in the kennel; no matter how fancy it is, it's not home, and you're not there. I also know that you don't like leaving him behind, but you can't take him with you when you go away for work. So I thought that when you visit Metropolis for the odd weekend he could come along too, and when you go away for work, he can stay with me."

She cupped his face and looked into his eyes "Asking me to trust you with my dog is pretty big; bigger than asking me to wear your class ring."

"I didn't have a class ring, but I still got you to go steady with me." He reminded her lightly with a quick smile "The second reason I want a house is purely selfish." At the curiosity on her face, he squeezed her hand lightly "As you know, I don't like it when you have to go away for work either because I can't join you, so a house would also help in that respect. I found a place that has big yards in both the front and back, and the driveway snakes away from the road. So when you go away, I can pick you up from wherever you are, bring you to the house and no one will see you arrive."

Sliding out of his lap onto the couch beside him, she frowned lightly "But I'll have to hide if we do that."

"Not really Lo. See usually I stay here with you during the week right?" She nodded "Ok, well that won't change, but when you go away to gather research, I can pick you up from wherever you are after I finish work, and drop you back in the morning before going onto work, so we'll only be at the house during the night." He shrugged unconcerned "It's not the perfect solution, but we don't tend to go out at night anyway, so it's really no different to me staying with you during the week. Plus you did say that you don't go away very often, correct?" She nodded slowly "So this is only for the times that you do. Any other time that you come and stay will be for the weekend, so there won't be any hiding at all. Plus, Fred won't sulk that you're away, because you'll be there with him at night."

Her lips hitched up at the corners "Do you have designs on me, or my dog?"

He smiled and stroked his fingers over her cheek "On you most definitely, but I'm also very fond of Fred. I know that you're crazy about him, and I don't suppose you really want to put him into the Kennel every time you come to Metropolis for the weekend."

"No I don't, but if you get a house then surely you'll want to stay there during the week rather than coming here, oth...."

"No I won't." He cut in firmly.

"Clark, if you don't stay there then you'll just be throwing away even more money on rent than you do right now, for a house that you'll only be living in every third month, and even then it will only be for the weekend." She finished logically.

_Baby wherever you sleep, I'm going to be right there beside you for the rest of our lives. I intend to entice you into moving to Metropolis but until then, if you're sleeping in Seattle, I am too; _he thought silently. Shaking his head in answer to her query, he decided it was time to fight logic with logic "At the moment I'm still paying rent on my apartment, and as you know accommodation in Metropolis is high because it's in the city. So although the rent is higher because it's a decent sized house, it's not that much more since it's situated outside the city. The rent they're asking is really very reasonable all things considered." He bent his head and pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth "And the only time I'll be interested in staying there, is when you're there with me."

She looked at him soberly "It seems crazy to get a house just for my dog and the odds times when I'm away. Maybe you should think about this."

_He didn't need to think about it, he just had to plant the idea in her mind so that she'd think about it. _"I've already thought about it, and I wanna do it for you, me and your dog." He replied sincerely, and letting go of her hand, slipped his under her shirt to stroke the small of her back "I'm being selfish Lo, I want you to feel at home when you stay with me in Metropolis, I also want you to feel comfortable leaving Fred with me when you have to go away. In the first scenario, I know you'll feel better if he's not locked up in the Kennel every other month, and in the second, I know that given his size you'll feel better if he has plenty of room to be free while staying with me."

"Well it sounds like you've made up your mind, and I don't mean to discourage you but...." She trailed off and shrugged uneasily.

"But what?"

"Nothing."

His hand slipped from her back to tip her face up to his "But what Lo?"

She chewed her lip and shrugged half-heartedly "Well what if we break up one day, like in a year or so? You'll be stuck with a big house until you find another apartment, and it can be hard finding housing in Metropolis that suits your budget so...."

"Do you anticipate that we'll break up?" He asked gently.

"No one knows what's going to happen down the road." She replied in a low voice.

"No they don't, but I told you before that we're still going to be together when we're 90." He looked into her eyes and affirmed once again "I believe that utterly Lois, no doubts."

She smiled tremulously at his words "I'd suggest that you just come here and live with me, but unless you want to leave the Daily Planet it wouldn't work."

"Baby I'd move to Seattle if I could, I've even given it some thought, but I've only been in the Journalism game full time for less than a year. Leaving so soon wouldn't be good for my reputation, unless I decide to go freelance as I did while travelling." Her face lightened at the knowledge that she was important enough to him that he'd thought about moving to the other side of the country just to be with her, and he was glad that he had seriously considered it. Smiling apologetically he finished "Unfortunately I'm not rich enough that I can afford to be unemployed until someone decides to give me a chance in Seattle. So for n..."

Lois quickly rushed in to speech cutting him off "I understand why you can't move here, and I also think it's incredibly sweet that you even thought about it."

"Not so sweet since I know that flying here takes me only minutes, in which case it doesn't matter where I live as I get to be with you either way." He reminded her honestly.

"You thought about it, and that's sweet." She returned firmly.

He grinned and decided that if she wanted to think of it as sweet, then he wasn't going to argue with her. Reaching up he tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear "Ok, well as I was saying, for now I can't move here, so I'll make do with renting a house that we can all live in for the odd weekend in Metropolis."

She smiled at his phrasing and bobbed her head.

"I want you to come and look at the place I found. I think it will suit all of us, but I want you to see it first before I make a final decision."

"It's going to be your house, so if you like it, that's all that matters." Lois replied puzzled.

"No it's not, I want you to feel at home remember; besides I also want Fred to check it out and see if he's happy with it." He chuckled lightly "The last thing I need is a stroppy dog that's showing me the sulks because he feels cheated out of staying in a fancy kennel, and dumped into a place that isn't good enough for him."

She gurgled out a laugh and nodded "He would do that you know."

"I know." He replied, and turned to eye ball the animal in question that was currently curled up, snuffling quietly beside him.

"Ok, we'll come and see it." She wrapped her arms around his torso and hugged him tight before leaning back to smile "That's for me and Fred. He loves feeling special, and I think being willing to move into a house just for him is pretty special."

"For all of us" He corrected tenderly "I'm doing it for all of us, but it's mostly for you Lois."

She snuggled in next to him and leant her head on his shoulder "I'm not sure if Fred or me is happier that I met you again, but I think it's a tie."

He brushed his lips against her forehead "It's me."

She tilted her head to look up at him, he looked down and leaning forward lips brushed softly once then again before locking together. A moment later they broke apart in laughter when the dog stuck his nose between their faces. Lois collapsed onto his chest in giggles, Clark turned and eyed the mutt "Are you telling me that I can't kiss my girl Fred?"

The dog woofed and licked Clark's cheek.

"He's telling you that I'm just a girl, so what'd you want with me when you've got him?" Lois advised him while reaching over to pat the dog. At Clark's lifted brows, she held out her hand and gestured "See you're Fred's buddy. You take him flying, you wrestle and play with him, and he enjoys sitting beside you when you watch the football. Whereas I just pat him, and brush his hair and do other girly things."

He turned to the dog once again "Well buddy, there are times when I wanna be with my girl and would like some privacy." The dog cocked his head, looked at him sadly and whined. Turning to Lois, Clark asked curiously "Is he trying to make me feel guilty?"

"I suspect so, and he does a good job of it too huh?"

He nodded feelingly then reached up to ruffle the animal's fur.

***

Feeling the familiar lines pressed against her back, Lois turned her head to find Clark asleep, with his head resting on the pillow beside hers. She looked at the time, noted that it wasn't quite 3am and rolling over carefully, her eyes took in his features which were somewhat obscured but hazy enough to see by the moonlight filtering through the curtains. Lifting her hand, she brushed her fingertips over his brow, down the bridge of his nose, swept across his lips, down his chin to his jaw, and smiled when he murmured, and lifted his hand to press hers against his cheek.

Years ago she never would have believed that she'd ever find herself in this situation with Clark Kent. Never would have imagined that he could make her happy, that he would be the man to make her feel like this. Before meeting him again, she would have sworn that she was done with relationships. She'd had more than enough; enough bad luck, enough tears and heartache, enough everything, and yet here she was again.

She'd met him again almost 9 months ago, and yet there were still times when she'd turn around, or just look up and the expression on his face, in his eyes would cause the butterflies to dance in her stomach. She usually tried to ignore the intensity of his expression by looking away. However, her eyes would be drawn back to his time and again, only to find that instead of looking away awkwardly, his attention was still focused on her. By the time she was no longer able to tear her eyes from his, her heart would be hammering in her ears, her tummy quivering; and then he'd do the sweetest things and just reduce her to mush. He'd brush the hair away from her cheek, lean over and kiss her softly, clasp her hand; just touch her in some way that was all about making love, without being sexual.

Sometimes he made her feel as young and giddy as a school girl. She hadn't felt that way in long time, actually she hadn't felt that way since she was a school girl, and boys had been a mystery that she was just beginning to find interesting.

When they were younger they had next to nothing in common, and opposing views about most everything. Possibly the biggest was their view on love. He believed that destiny would point him to person he was meant to be with; she believed that you followed your heart and took a chance. Destiny and chance, it made no difference because ultimately they both read the signs wrong, and consequently failed.

He'd found that destiny had nothing to do with his decision to marry Lana; she had taken a chance only to find that she'd mistaken the dictates of her heart. And now here they were; together. Who would have thought?

When his lashes fluttered open, she didn't close hers feigning sleep, just kept them steady on his. They gazed at each other, with no hint of teasing or smiles. He brought the hand that was sitting against his cheek to his lips, pressed a kiss against her fingertips, before letting go to curve his arm around her waist, and draw her closer against him.

Leaning forward, lashes fluttered closed, and lips met. They made love quietly; no laughter, or banter, no sexy words, or affirmations; they just let themselves be in the moment. The rustle of bedcovers, the soft sound of lips meeting and parting, quickened breaths, and hushed murmurs were the only sounds in the otherwise quiet room. When it was over, he kept her in the circle of his arms, rolled them to their sides and their eyes continued to hold fast to each other's, until sleep claimed them once again.

***

_6 Days later_

Clark crawled into bed, looked at the clock, saw that it was only 5pm and closed his eyes tiredly. In the very early hours of the previous Friday morning he'd woken up to find Lois' eyes on him, and the expression within their depths had caused his heart to flutter, before rolling over slowly in his chest. If it wasn't love that he saw, it was damned close. He'd been too afraid to say anything that could shatter the moment; in truth he hadn't wanted to. He'd just wanted to drift in the love that swept over him, and be with his beloved.

They had made love many times silently with gentle touches, but the last time had been different. In the time they'd been together Lois had looked at him with happiness, attraction, laughter, and even affection, but she had never looked at him before, as she had the other morning. He'd fallen back asleep hoping that she was ready to hear that which was in his heart, but didn't get the chance to find out as he'd been woken up with a call from Oliver shortly afterwards, requesting his presence at the watchtower post haste. He'd moved her aside carefully, dressed swiftly but silently and left her sleeping.

When he got to the tower it was to the news that a group of super villains calling themselves the Legion of Doom, had banded together to achieve their ambition of getting rich, gaining control of the entire world, and destroying the Justice League. Apparently the last was their main goal, since they figured they would be rich once the league couldn't stop them from taking what they wanted; and domination of the world was their reward for a job well done.

The battle between the league and the legion had taken almost a week to end. The criminals weren't stupid, and although they fought amongst themselves at times, their overriding goals made them a formidable enemy.

He'd been sure that someone was running the whole operation as it was clear the legion were being directed, and taking orders from someone who was not only smart, but could command both respect and fear from a bunch of cutthroat thugs, who'd kill as soon as look at each other. It hadn't taken him long to discover that Lex Luthor was the mastermind behind the whole scheme.

Since Lex didn't need money, he'd obviously persuaded the villains that banding together would help them all get what they wanted. Some desired wealth beyond their wildest dreams, Lex craved universal dominion, and all wanted the Justice League gone so they had free reign to do as they liked.

Considering some of the villains had powers and abilities beyond that of a human, but at times didn't appear to be quite sane, it was also clear that Lex hadn't only become more dangerous than he had been years before, he'd also grown balls of steel to not only bring the thugs together but to boss them around as well.

For 6 days and nights the league had been kept busy fighting one villain after another, helping to bail each other out of whatever tight spot they found themselves in, all while trying to stop the legion from gaining the upper hand.

It hadn't been easy; the bastards had obviously decided the best way to achieve their goal was to divide and conquer using two different methods, and both times they'd almost succeeded. The first was by causing dissension among the league. They slyly praised or ridiculed one attempt to stop them after another. Scornfully mocked those who had no special abilities calling them nothing more than baggage, feigned sympathy for those who were either human or alien with powers, kindly pointing out that while their help was always accepted, they never would be; and they'd done it all in such a cunning way, that no one in the league had even realised they were being played.

They'd all started by working together to stop the band of villains, but before long were arguing about the best way to accomplish the task. Those with no powers wanted to prove they weren't useless, those with powers resented being told what to do as if the others were their betters, and each attempt to stop the legion that failed caused heated arguments. Within two days they were squabbling like school children. By the time they realised they were being manipulated, and their petty arguments were leaving both them and the world vulnerable to attack, the legion were ready to sneak in their second attempt.

This time the miscreants began to cause trouble and strife simultaneously around the globe. The JLA likewise split up to stop them, and as each attempt by the villains failed, they ran away with their tail between their legs before they could be caught.

When Lex was the only one left, he swore vengeance, promising that he wouldn't give up until he'd rid the world of the JLA himself. They'd found it was amusing that one man thought he could take them all on and win, when a whole team hadn't been successful. So when Lex began to openly jeer at them, as if trying to get in one last insult before retreating from the field, he'd laughed, thinking that his former friend wasn't much of a threat after all. He'd thought wrong. He did become somewhat....miffed when Lex became downright rude and disparagingly called him Stupidman. He'd gritted his teeth, refusing to be drawn into a name calling contest, even though he'd been sorely tempted to childishly yell back baldy. But overall assumed that if the worst the man could do was throw insults, then no one had much to worry about. It didn't take Lex long to show him just why assuming was foolish.

What they hadn't realised at the time, was that the legions plan was simply to stretch the Justice League's resources further, and tire them out with one reprehensible deed after another that was doomed to failure from the outset before scurrying away like whipped dogs, to make it appear that Lex was the only one left.

While the JLA mistakenly thought they'd won and could relax, Lex distracted them for a short time with insults and invective ranging from their garish costumes, to their questionable parentage, their intellectual inadequacy, right through to their sexual proclivities. As he was doing that the rest of the villains divided themselves, and moved into position to begin putting their genuine second attempt into action. To the JLA's shame, they'd almost been caught with their pants down thinking they'd attained victory with very little effort. However, when the legion was ready the second battle began in earnest, and that's when they understood that overconfidence instead of caution was their second mistake. Half of the villains kept the league busy with all out war, and while they were occupied with trying to attain the upper hand, while at the same time helping each other just to stay alive, the rest of the villainy group lead by Lex, snuck in the back door in an attempt to bring their plans to fruition.

It had been close more than once. If J'onn J'onzz hadn't stopped fighting long enough to pull away from the action to concentrate and read Lex's mind, the legion would have triumphed; and very likely half of the league would have been wiped out in one fell swoop.

Every member of the league was exhausted; from mentally trying to outwit the criminals, and from physically fighting them to boot. He was just as worn out as everyone else. Unfortunately he'd had very little sleep before Oliver's call had first come in, and as the battle had been almost non-stop for a week, he hadn't been able to take the time to relax then either. While the human members of the league had rested to regain their strength, he and the other 'alien' members had stayed vigilant. Just when it was their turn to rest, the legion came back at them even harder, and all the members of the league had to pitch in just to stop them from winning.

Although the legion had managed to escape, no one was in any doubt they would be back; but for now they'd gone into hiding. Possibly to gather resources and take the time to heal, to discuss both their own and the JLA's weaknesses and strengths, more than likely they were just as tired as the league, and had decided that running now and coming back to fight another day, was better than taking a beating and perchance a defeating at the present time. In the end every member of the JLA was so tired, they'd been glad to take whatever hiatus in hostilities they'd been given.

The conflict had been rough; there were many injuries to both sides and unfortunately some civilians were hurt as well, but there were no deaths thank goodness. Before this the JLA had either dealt with crooks, villains and the like one on one, or had helped in other ways to keep the world safe. Although at times it hadn't been easy, they'd always prevailed. This was the first time they'd been taken on en masse; and knew that it wouldn't be the last. They had won this round, but couldn't assume that they would the next. The legion had taught the Justice League one very important lesson; never be complacent. Alertness and vigilance would be their watchwords from this time forth.

He knew the media had been covering everything that was going on, so knew that Lois and his mom were aware that he'd come close a couple of times. However, at the time he didn't have the luxury of worrying about them. He'd had to push everything far from his mind, and concentrate on the task at hand.

He'd parted from his friends, relieved they'd attained a triumph of sorts, and begun to fly to Seattle looking forward to getting some much needed sleep, followed by even more needed TLC, but had felt far too tired to make even the shortest of journeys, so instead turned in the direction of his apartment. He'd no sooner flown in the window than he knew that tired or not, he should have gone home to Lois. This wasn't home; this was just an apartment which he kept for appearances sake. He was tempted to fly right out again, but as he'd had almost no sleep or rest for 6 days, he now felt as strong as a limp noodle; and the bed looked too inviting even without his girlfriend in it.

He'd called Lois, but had to be content with leaving a message on her answer machine, had called his mom, and had a quick conversation with the promise that he'd go and see her on the morrow, and that was as far as he'd gotten before tiredness swept over him once again. There was no way he could fly to Seattle until he had some rest; he'd barely had the energy to stand upright under the shower. Yawning hugely, Clark slipped into slumber hoping that no calls came in during the night, because right now he wasn't sure that he'd have the strength to help anyone.

***

_Next Day – Afternoon_

Clark took a sip of his coffee, put it back down with a pleased sigh and finished typing up his story. When he'd woken up this morning he'd felt more vibrant and relaxed than he had in days. Given that he'd had 14 hours of uninterrupted sleep, without having to stay alert or on guard it wasn't surprising.

He'd almost bounced out of bed into the shower, had finished getting dressed and was in the process of getting himself some breakfast when Chloe arrived. Shooting a quick look of appreciation at his friend for her help, he sat back recalling their short, but much needed conversation.

"Hi Clark."

"Hey Chloe, c'mon in." He opened the door wider, and waved her to a seat at the table "I'm just getting breakfast, do you want some?"

"No thanks, but I'll have some coffee if you've made it."

"No problem; so what's up, usually I just see you at work."

"Yeah, but I thought I should come here first, and give you the cover story that I concocted to soothe down Perry's ruffled feathers over your absence, before you walk into the bullpen this morning." She bobbed her head in thanks for the mug, and grinned at the slight 'eee' his mouth automatically made "Yep, eee is right."

He grabbed a coffee for himself and took a seat opposite "How mad was he?"

She rolled her eyes "Well I doubt that you'd remember since you had a lot more important things on your mind, but I've been out of town visiting dad. Anyway, when I got into work yesterday morning, Perry called me into his office and asked me if I knew where you were. Apparently no one in the newsroom could tell him, so by the time I returned he was kind of steamed since as he put it, he hadn't seen hide nor hair of you since last Thursday." She grimaced lightly "Well of course I knew where you were, the media was covering what was going on, but I couldn't tell him that you were busy with the JLA."

Clark swiped his hand over his chin and nodded "So what'd you tell him?"

"I told him that you got the opportunity to follow the Justice Leagues battle first hand, and called me just before you left. I apologised and said that I was meant to let him know but forgot as my dad hadn't been well and I was worried about him, and blah blah; basically I lied my ass off." She shrugged unconcerned.

"Sorry Chloe, I didn't mean to put you in that position."

"Don't worry about it; you were busy helping to keep the world safe, so I figure a little lying to cover you makes us even." She replied with a blithe smile.

"So how'd Perry take the news about me following the JLA?"

"He wanted to know why you called me and not him. I kinda fumbled on that part, and instead began to point out how you'd have an exclusive when you returned, that would blow all the others out of the water." She grinned wickedly "I figure that bit of honesty balances out all the lies that I told."

He nodded and sipped his coffee "Well I can certainly give him first-hand accounts from the league members about what took place etc."

She inclined her head "Exactly; he might give you an earful for not calling your editor, but if you give him a good story, all will be forgiven." She smiled apologetically "I'm sorry Clark I didn't have a lot of time to come up with something. The only other thing I could say was that you were sick, but I couldn't think of anything that you could have, which would put you out of commission for work, since I didn't know how long you'd be gone for." She sipped her coffee and rolled her eyes once again "Perry was demanding to know where you were, and I had to say something. I couldn't say you had the flu, because unless it's turned into viral pneumonia he'd still wonder why you couldn't haul your ass into work. I couldn't say that you'd hurt your arm because that wouldn't stop you from coming into work, I couldn't say that you'd broken your leg, because if the drama with the league was over quickly, I figured that you wouldn't want to be hobbling around with a fake cast. And to make it even harder, unless your voice box is broken none of those would have stopped you from calling into work sick yourself, so I was kind of stymied on making up excuses for where you were."

He shook his head in rebuttal and smiled in gratitude "Its fine Chlo, I appreciate your help. Truthfully at the time I wasn't even thinking about work or anything else, but when I woke up this morning I was wondering what I could say to Perry, that wouldn't get me fired the minute I stepped into the bull pen."

"Well, I figured that Lois hadn't called him because if she tried to make an excuse for you, that would only invite even more questions. Since she lives on the opposite side of the country, and Perry doesn't know that it only takes you a minute to get there, he would of course want to know why you went to Seattle after work on Thursday, knowing you had to work on Friday, and subsequently just why you hadn't hauled yourself back as yet." He nodded in agreement "I tried to call her but she's a hard woman to get a hold off."

"I know; I'm lucky that it's just as easy for me to fly to Seattle and see if she's there, rather than waiting for her phone to click over to the answer machine." Clark laughed lightly "Thanks again Chloe."

She bobbed her head, finished her coffee, stood and grabbed her purse "Well we'd better get going."

He nodded, grabbed his suit coat and slipped it on "I left a message on Lo's machine yesterday afternoon, telling her that I was going to call her this morning. However, as it's not quite 4.30 in Seattle, I think maybe I'll call her later and go to see Perry before I do anything else."

"I would, since the media's been keeping an eye on what's been happening, Lois will know that you're fine, and was more than likely letting you rest last night; keeping Perry waiting however could be injurious to your health." She teased mischievously.

He lifted his eye to the ceiling and ushered her out the door.

Once at work, he'd gone straight to Perry's office, and expounded on Chloe's cover story.

The editor listened with interest when he explained that he'd been out and about in the early hours of the previous Friday morning when he saw Superman. As it was obvious the superhero wasn't looking as genial as usual, he'd asked what the problem was, figuring that he could get the scoop on a story. However, when Superman gave him a succinct version of the problem, he'd asked if he could tag along, on the proviso that he stay out of the way and didn't annoy anyone.

He explained that the superhero had refused at first, not wanting any civilians to be in the thick of things, but he had conceded with the argument that the world would get an unbiased view of what was going on, if a media representative was there. Unfortunately he'd only been given 5 minutes to throw some clothes into a bag, grab his pad and pencil and make one quick call to prevent anyone from worrying about his absence. When Perry asked why he hadn't contacted his editor instead of his friend, he'd quickly apologised saying that as it was only 5am, he didn't want to bother him so had called Chloe.

"Kent, for future reference, no matter what the time is, I expect to be bothered; clear!"

"Yes sir."

"Ok, so tell me what you've got."

The editor had all but stroked his chin in pleasure while he'd recounted the battle between the league of heroes and the band of villains. He'd almost purred when informed that Clark had gotten a number of snappy quotes which he'd heard from both sides, and when told that he had exclusive first-hand accounts by several members of the Justice League about the battle, and it was all for the Daily Planet, the editor had grinned in fiendish delight.

After he grew quiet, Perry sat back in his chair, linked his fingers, rested his hands on his stomach and nodded minutely "Kent you're dating Sullivan's cousin Lois correct?"

Clark pushed up his glasses, nodded and rushed in to try and explain "Yes sir, I usually fly out to spend the weekend with her after work on Friday night's, but last weekend I didn't because I was with the JLA. I would have called her normally, but since I work with Chloe and not Lois, I thought she could tell both you and Lo where I was, but usually I spend the weeken...."

"Yes, yes." The editor waved his hand impatiently and asked forthrightly "Did Superman let you go along with him because he was trying to make up for causing trouble in paradise between you and Lois six months ago?"

"Um, well I'm not sure. That's all been resolved but I know that Superman felt bad, and he did apologise to me again for saying that she was his girlfriend; especially since the media still say that she is sometimes." He paused and quickly rushed on "I don't mean the Daily Planet because we only print the truth, but some of the less reputable papers do, but it's not like he's interested in Lo or anything and....maybe." He finished by coughing lightly and straightening the knot in his tie.

Perry nodded happily "Ok, so from your convoluted explanation, I'm gathering that more than likely that is the reason and if so, that's good enough for me. Between you and your girlfriend the Planet's making out like bandits on Superman news, and this time we've got a hot story that involves the whole Justice League." He leant forward and placed his elbows on the desk "Keep bringing me stuff like this and I'll always be happy."

"Yes sir."

"Listen son, I don't think you should mention that Superman allowed you to witness everything first hand." At Clark's raised brows, Perry sighed "Hard facts is the first thing you learn in journalism I know; but if you say that you were allowed to go, then other reporters will cry favouritism if they ask in future and are refused. Reporters take risks Kent, it's part of the job and we both know it, but if the JLA doesn't let anyone go with them in future, a reporter might think the only other way of getting the story first hand, is from the bad guys point of view." He hadn't thought of that, and frowned at the editors words "Yes, and in the end they'll either get themselves killed, or be used as a bargaining chip by the criminals to get what they want."

"I won't mention it chief; I'll still use hard facts but I'll say that I got all the information from interviewing members of the JLA." He stopped and shrugged lightly "That is true actually, I was allowed to go along yeah, but I was kept well away from any action."

Perry tapped his desk and nodded "Ok, and I've already told Sullivan to just say that you were trying to get interviews, but to keep a lid on it otherwise; so we'll keep it between ourselves." Clark nodded in accord "I want the story to be ready for the evening edition, can you deliver?"

"Yes sir."

"Good man, then after you've written and filed the story you can take off for the weekend, and don't bother coming in until Tuesday."

"But it's only Thursday....isn't it?" Clark asked doubtfully.

"Yes Kent it's Thursday, but since you've spent the last 6 days following the JLA around, I'm willing to cut you some slack so you can leave early, and have a proper rest on the weekend. However, I want you back here bright eyed and bushy tailed on Tuesday." Perry finished by tapping his desk.

"Thank you sir."

Perry waved his hand at the door "Well Kent, get on with it."

Clark got up, and stepped to the door but stopped to turn back at Perry's call "Tell Lois that if she ever wants to put her journalism degree to work, that the Planet wants first dibs."

"I will sir but she's not interested right now and ...."

"I know that Kent..." Perry cut him off abruptly "...but when she was told me that she was Samuel Camilleri I was dammed impressed. She's obviously good at getting information, and anyone who can write that stuff has got grit, the kind I like in my reporters. You're reporting skills are improving fast, you're also a quick learner and determined; that's another thing I like in my reporters. I also think your writing style and hers would make a hell of a combination, maybe enough to put you right up there with Woodward and Bernstein." He heaved a disappointed sigh "I imagine she makes a lot more money writing her books than she'd make as a journalist, but it doesn't hurt to let her know that she'd be welcome if she ever changes her mind."

"Yes sir."

The editor cocked his head to the side "Anyone who can con Perry White into giving them free advertising in the Planet for a bachelor auction, has got the gift of the gab. That woman sailed right in here and before I knew it, I wasn't only giving her free advertising, but also agreeing to pay Jimmy overtime to take the photos, and get girly quotes of the Superheroes with their dates. Don't get me wrong Kent, the papers sold like hot cakes, but a bachelor auction, heaven help me." He threw up his hands and rolled his eyes "JLA or not, that kind of thing belongs in a woman's magazine not the Daily Planet. Yet she managed to strike a deal with me that cost her nothing, and us very little compared to the number of papers we sold in return."

Clark smiled in commiseration "She does have the gift of the gab chief."

"How do you control her son?"

"I don't try sir."

Perry nodded gloomily in understanding "Well, let her know that if or when she wants to get back into journalism, the Planets interested."

His brows flew up in surprise "Back into journalism; does that mean you know she wrote for the Inquisitor chief?"

Perry rolled his eyes again and nodded "Yeah she mentioned it, so I dug out her articles. What she wrote about in that rag was utter poppycock, but it was the Inquisitor so we'll say no more. Her style back then was rough, but you could see the promise. Her books however, show how far she's come. She'd be an asset for any newspaper Kent."

"I think so too sir; I'll tell her what you said, but I know that she's not interested in being a journalist again." When the editor waved his hand dismissing him, Clark opened the door, stepped out and closed it at his back. His lips curved when he heard Perry mutter "Damned shame, that woman has a way with words that I'd like to see her put to use for the Planet."

After leaving Perry's office, he'd walked casually through the bullpen in the direction of the kitchen area, and after checking that no one was around, raced to the roof of the Planet to pull out his phone and frantically began calling his friends.

His phone burned hot as he made one call after another asking his friends if they'd mind if he used their battle to stay employed. He explained the cover story that he'd already given Perry, and further assured them that he wouldn't be advertising that either Superman or the JLA had let him tag along as a reporter. Instead he would write the story as if he'd interviewed their super-persona's who had told him this or that, and had given him quotes that he'd actually heard them and the villains say at the time; so would they mind please. Each had laughed and given him the go ahead, a couple jokingly reminding him to ensure that he gave a full account of their bravery.

AC told him to be sure and mention that he'd had to help Superman when the guy had fallen like a pansy girl, simply because a little rock had tripped him up. He'd snorted in amusement, before recalling that when Superman found Aquaman floundering like a fish on dry land, simply because he was a little thirsty, he'd had to fly the lazy bastard to the nearest ocean and drop him in just to get some work out of him, AC had chuckled in return and they'd both hung up satisfied with the exchange.

Once back at his desk, he first took down notes, jotting down anything and everything that came into his mind about the fight between the two groups. Once that was done, he went through them again, and began to put them into chronological order, adding any other details that he'd forgotten. The third time through, he took out anything that either wasn't relevant, or that had to stay confidential to those in the league. Then he re-wrote the notes to ensure that everything was accounted for.

Once he was happy with what he'd gotten down, he began to type, taking his time to ensure the article was interesting, and factual covering when the league had had the upper hand or was losing, and vice versa for the criminals, but without revealing any details the public didn't need to know about. Any references to weakness were taken out, he certainly wasn't going to advertise his weakness to Kryptonite, or any of his friends particular Achilles heels, so had to ensure that his eagerness to tell the story, didn't harm others unthinkingly.

After a vanilla version of the story was typed, he fleshed it out to add more details here and there, took out a few parts, put them back in then sat back with a sigh. Stretching Clark looked around the bullpen and smiled at all the productivity that was going on. A newspaper was rarely ever quiet. He'd heard the voices of his colleagues talking and calling out in the background, heard phones ringing, the clatter of keys as reporters feverishly typed their stories, but he'd been completely in the zone and hadn't paid much attention. He would have heard a cry for help, but he'd long ago learnt how to drown out everyday noise, so the buzz hadn't fazed him one whit.

Seeing that it was just on lunch time, he decided it was time to take a break and picked up his phone to call Lois. However, at the sound of the machine switching over, he hung up and pushed up out of his seat. He was impatient to see her, talk to her. He'd pushed everything aside but the job he had to do when fighting the villains. He'd managed to push everything aside and focus on writing the story for the past few hours, but knowing that he was free as soon as the article was finished, made it all the harder to concentrate on anything but what he'd seen in her eyes last Friday morning.

Giving himself a quick shake to get back to work so that he could leave, he got up and retrieved a sandwich from vending, a fresh cup of coffee, before returning to his desk. Sitting back satisfied two hours later, he let out a pleased smile. It was done, now he just had to read it thorough to ensure the whole article had been written as a series of interviews, with no hint that as a reporter he'd been there as a witness, check it for spelling and it was ready to be emailed to Perry.

Thirty minutes later he was in the final process of editing his story for errors and omissions when he felt a tap on his shoulder and turning, smiled.

"Hey CK, welcome back."

"Thanks Jimmy."

"Did you manage to get any interviews with the Justice League?" At Clark's lifted brows "I wondered where you were so asked Chloe. She told me that you were hoping to get accounts from them about what was going on."

"Yeah I was." Clark relied morosely.

"So I'm guessing they didn't talk to you huh? Sorry CK, but don't feel bad, they were busy and didn't talk to any other reporters either." Jimmy replied sympathetically, before lowering his voice "How'd Perry take it?"

"Well let's just say that he's kept me busy working on this boring article all day so far."

"That bad?"

Clark shrugged and pointed to his screen "Read the first paragraph, and then tell me."

Jimmy leant over, began to read, and whistled before turning back with a look of unholy glee on his face "You really had me going there for a minute. This is fantastic CK, I've only read a few lines but the chief's gonna love this."

He smiled back in satisfaction "I think so too; when I gave him the basic outline he was almost purring."

"How'd you manage to get it?" Not giving him time to answer, Jimmy held up a hand "We can talk about it another time, if I don't let you get back to it now, Perry will have my hide for interrupting." He nodded and began to turn back to his screen, then swung around at Jimmy's question "Did you get the message I sent you?"

"Sorry Jimmy I haven't checked my messages yet. I've been occupied writing this since I finished talking with Perry about it when I came in this morning." He smiled apologetically "I'll be done in a few minutes though, can it wait?"

Jimmy shrugged "I suppose, I answered your phone a couple of days ago, but this was before I realised you away chasing after the JLA. I told the lady that you'd call her back, took down the details and sent you an email." He shrugged regretfully "Sorry CK, I've been busy and only just remembered it now, or I would have called her back and said that you were out of town."

Clark frowned lightly "What was it about?"

"I don't know, she just asked for you."

"She; was it Lois?"

"Nope, but I have been meaning to talk to you about that." He grinned big and wide "A little bird told me that you're the boyfriend Lois mentioned at that news conference a few months ago."

"A little bird?" Clark asked with lifted brow, but a smile on his lips.

Jimmy smiled smugly and nodded his head in the direction of his ex-wife "Uh huh, a few days after the Lois/Superman lover's quarrel, I was talking to Chlo about whether Lois really was his girlfriend or not, and that's when she told me that you were dating her cousin."

"You didn't believe what they said at the press conference?"

"Yes and no; you know what they say 'there's no smoke without fire.' Blind Freddie can see that Lois is a knockout, and Superman's far from blind; I mean the guy's got super-vision, so...." He inclined his head meaningfully and wiggled his brows.

"I don't think he'd be that shallow Jimmy." He frowned lightly.

His friend snorted "Clark, we're all that shallow to start with. Everyone notices another person's physical attributes first, that's just human nature." He nodded in agreement "But it's what you see after the first look that counts. For example, if a man wakes up to himself and realises the woman's a bitch; and not in a good way, but doesn't care because he likes the outside packaging too much to give her up, then he's an idiot."

"True, but since Lois isn't a bitch, and Superman is not her boyfriend..."

"And you are."

"And I am." He confirmed proudly.

"Then as you're friend I'm happy for you, but stay on guard buddy. Normal guys like us can't compete with someone like Superman." Jimmy slapped him on the shoulder and turned towards his desk but swung around to call out "But getting back to the point _I told you so_,if you'd just listened to me years ago..." He trailed off tauntingly.

"I know, I know." Clark laughed in return and placing his fingers on the keyboard, resumed editing his story before sending it off to Perry.

Once done he transferred the story to a usb stick for Lois to read later, packed up everything in his briefcase, ensuring all notes were safely tucked away, and had just begun to check through his email in box when he was called into the editor's office. At the huge smile on the man's face, he knew that he'd delivered what Chloe had described; a story that was going to blow all the others right out of the water. After being kicked out of Perry's office with the admonition to have a good weekend, he smiled and promised that he would, right after checking his messages.

He couldn't believe the number of messages that he'd received in just 6 days. Some were just the usual administration emails informing employees about one thing or another, others were from colleagues notifying people when they wouldn't be in the office or available for whatever reason etc. Scrolling past all those, he found the telephone message from Jimmy, opened it and frowned lightly at the name.

He reached for his phone, punched in the digits and waited for the line to be picked up.

"Hello."

"Hi Sam its Clark, Abra left a message for me at work, but I've been out of town for the last few days and..." he trailed off hoping that would be enough and soon found that it was.

"I'll just get her; can you hang on for a minute?" At his affirmative reply, he heard the man call out "Hon, its Clark."

He heard the scuffle of feet and then a woman's voice answered "Clark"

"Yes."

"Um, Carly left a message on your home phone, but when she didn't hear back from you, she asked me to try and contact you since I live in Metropolis. I stopped by the Daily Planet but you weren't there, so I asked for Lois' cousin Chloe but she wasn't there either, and the person I spoke to couldn't help me to contact you. Anyway I called back the day before yesterday and the man I spoke to was nice. He said that you'd call me back but ...."

"What's wrong?" He cut in quietly.

"Sorry I'm rambling; I'm just so relieved to finally hear from you; sorry." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly "Lois was in a car accident...." At his swiftly indrawn breath, she quickly rushed on "She's fine; a little banged up, a little sore and bruised but that's mainly from the seatbelt and airbag. She has a few cuts and abrasions, a broken wrist, and a minor concussion but overall she's alright. I tried to get a flight to Seattle but because Lo's not a family member they didn't consider it an emergency, and since Carly told me that she was fine, I couldn't say it was an emergency but..."

He heard the worry in her voice, and lowered his to both soothe her agitation, and to ensure that those in his vicinity couldn't overhear "Abra, I'm sorry that I didn't call you or Carly back before now. I've been out of town and out of contact and only managed to get access to your message a few minutes ago." He closed his eyes and reigned in his impatience to be off the phone and on his way to Lois "I actually flew into Seattle to surprise Lo, and only just got off the plane which explains all the background noise, but I'll be at her house soon. Would you like me to call you back after I see her, just to let you know that everything's ok?"

"Oh well, Carly picked her up from the hospital about an hour ago and called me. She said that Lo's a little doped up from the medicine, and is sleeping at the moment, so I know that she's ok. But when she's feeling a little more with it, could you please ask her to call me; I just want to hear from her how she's feeling." She paused to swallow heavily "It's just so frustrating being on the opposite side of the country, and not seeing her for myself."

"As soon as she's feeling well enough I'll have her call you, and thank you for calling me." After saying farewells, he grabbed his bag, strode over to Chloe's desk, quietly gave her a brief run-down of the situation, and promised to phone her after he saw Lois.

He flew to Lois' house in record time, berating himself for not checking his machine, or going straight to Seattle the previous day. When he came to a stop above her house and x-rayed down, he swore fluently under his breath at finding Carly in the kitchen. He couldn't land in Lois' backyard, and he couldn't just zip inside the open window. Looking around, he found that no one was home two houses away, zipped down to their back yard, spun into his work clothes and raced to Lois house.

Clark knocked on the door, then swore silently again when he remembered that he had the damn keys so didn't need to knock. He turned the handle, stepped inside and almost ran over Carly, who'd just entered the foyer "How is she; is she alright?"

"She's fine Clark; the medicine's knocked her out so she's sleeping, but she's ok." Patting his back in comfort, she gestured with her head "Why don't you go and see her." He walked quickly towards the bedroom, nodding absently when she called out that Fred was already there.

He walked into the bedroom to find Lois fast asleep, and Fred sitting vigil at her side with his chin resting on the mattress watching her. Sitting down carefully on the edge of the bed, he patted the mutt's head, before x-raying her carefully. He'd been told there was nothing seriously wrong, but had to see for himself and felt better for it. Exhaling heavily at finding no internal breaks or trauma, he looked her over with normal vision. Her arm was in plaster for the broken wrist, he winced at the sight of deep cut high on the same arm, brushed her hair aside and saw the discoloured lump on her forehead, and closed his eyes in relief at finding no other signs of injury, expect for the occasional scrape or bruise.

Bending down he pressed his lips against hers gently, then turned to the animal when Fred put a paw on his knee "She's ok boy; she's fine." Standing he stretched, and stepped out of the bedroom making his way back to the kitchen.

"Feeling better?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry Carly, I've been away on a story for the Planet for the past few days and didn't even think to check my messages." He took a seat at the kitchen island and rubbed his forehead knowing that whatever he said now had to be believable, since the woman didn't know that he was Superman. "I finished my story a few hours ago, and since my boss told me that I could take off for the weekend, I didn't go home just came straight here. Because of that, I didn't know that you'd left a message at home until I talked to Abra. I was hoping to surprise Lois by joining her for an early weekend and was actually in the Seattle airport terminal when I thought to check my work messages, and that's when I found the one from Abra and called her back." He bobbed his head in thanks for the coffee she handed to him "I didn't even bother collecting my luggage, so I'd better call later and ask them to put it aside for me."

"I can go and pick it up if you like."

"Thanks but I have plenty of clothes here so I don't need them. I'll get them when I leave on Monday night." He replied and surreptitiously adjusted his glasses to peek into the bedroom "Where's Eva?"

"She left a little while ago, but don't be surprised if she rings." Carly replied taking a seat on the stool beside him.

"I won't." He put in with a small smile "Thank you..." At the quizzical look on her face "For getting Abra to call me. If she hadn't, I wouldn't have known that anything was wrong until I arrived."

She patted his arm in understanding "I'm pretty sure I know how you feel about Lois, so I knew that when you didn't call me back, it wasn't from a lack of caring."

He shook his head firmly "God no; I love Lois more than anything, so not caring will never figure into the equation."

Her lips curved "I thought so; actually I was pretty sure when you joined us all for dinner on the Sunday night after Abra's wedding, but I knew for sure at Julie's barbeque."

Clark smiled crookedly "Pretty obvious huh?"

"Mmmm, Lois doesn't know yet does she?" Carly asked curiously.

"No, I made sure that Lo knew straight of the bat that it was more than just sex, and although I think she's getting a pretty good inkling of how I feel, I don't think it's really sunk in yet."

"And you?" She asked softly.

"I'm hoping that she's beginning to feel the same way back." He replied simply.

She nodded minutely "Well whatever you're doing seems to be working. None of us have seen Lo this happy in a long time, so we're all glad the two of you met up again." Setting down her coffee cup, she smiled slightly "And since you're here till Monday night I'll leave her in your capable hands."

"Thanks, I'll call my editor and let him know what's happened, hopefully he'll let me stay with Lo next week, if not I'll call my mom. She'll wanna come and stay if I can't be here."

"Well the doctor said that Lois was fine. The cut on her arm will hurt for a while, the broken wrist will take a bit longer to heal, but other than that she'll be good as new in a week." She told him gently.

"I'll still ask for the time off; Perry's gruff but he's fair minded. I think he'll understand why I wanna be here instead of at work."

She nodded and gave him a run-down of what the doctor had told her earlier, then passed on the instructions she'd been given before leaving the hospital with Lois "I've left the tablets that she has to take on her bedside table, she had one an hour ago, so she'll need another in about three hours. If she doesn't wake up let her sleep through, and she can take it when she does wake up ok?" He nodded "I'll call later and see how she is."

"Thanks again, not only for staying with her while I wasn't here, but for trying to get in touch, and for getting Abra to call me."

"If I couldn't have stayed, someone else would have; trust me." She patted his hand once again and rose "No one wanted to call you until we knew what her condition was, but when we got to the hospital and found that her injuries were relatively minor, all things considered, we talked about it, and decided that only one of us should call. I found your number in Lo's book but since we didn't want to bombard you with half a dozen messages from everyone saying that Lois was in an accident thereby alarming you unnecessarily, I was elected to be the bearer of bad tidings."

"All the women know huh?" He asked with a lop-sided smile.

She smiled in satisfaction "Yep, we've all seen you with Lo over the past 8 months, and we've heard her talk about you; being women who love our friend we've also had a good gossip about it, so we know."

"Actually we've been together for 8 and a half months." He corrected with a small smile, she grinned in return. Shrugging carelessly he continued "I don't care who knows how I feel about Lois, but I know that all of you are important to her, so what does everyone think?"

She leant forward and pressed her lips to his cheek "We all think you were just what Lois needed."

"That goes both ways y'know?"

"I do know and that's exactly how it should be." She smiled softly, before turning to make her way to the front door, and with a last quick wave she left. Once she was gone, he closed and bolted the door then made his way back to the bedroom.

After having a quick shower, he changed and took a seat beside the bed to watch over his love.

He'd been so damn tired the previous day that he didn't even check his message machine, before falling asleep. Since he'd resolutely pushed everything out of his head other than the battle with the legion, he hadn't even known that anything was wrong with Lois. He hadn't checked his machine this morning, and today he'd been so preoccupied working on his article that he hadn't even left a message on her machine when he called earlier.

Raking a hand through his hair in frustration, he tugged hard wishing that he'd checked his messages when he'd gotten home the previous afternoon. While he'd been sleeping, Lois had been in the hospital. Ok, so she hadn't been in danger, the doctor had only kept her in because he'd wanted to ensure that she was ok, but he should have been with her. It shouldn't have been up to her friends to look after her, to pick her up and bring her home from the hospital, or to chase after him to return one damned phone call.

If Jimmy hadn't remembered sending him an email and told him, he'd probably still be fart-assing around with his story. He knew that wasn't true, he'd almost been finished when Jimmy spoke to him, but if....if, such a small word to hold so much meaning.

If he hadn't pushed Lois and everything else to the back of his mind during the week, he could have stopped the accident from ever happening. If only he'd come here yesterday instead of going to the apartment, he would have known then that she'd been hurt. If only he'd checked his messages before falling asleep, if only...there were a lot of them, but he couldn't go back and undo anything. Blowing out a deep breath, he picked up her hand and held it.

She was ok, and he'd ensure that she would always be ok. He needed Lois; her laughter, her bitchiness, her softness, her chatter, all of that made her the woman that she was; and he needed her. A little over 8 months ago he'd been sitting in the restaurant with his friends and his life had been like a desert; empty on the surface but full of promise for his new life underneath. Then he'd seen Lois, and instantaneously his life was transformed like a desert after the rain. It was no longer empty on the surface, he didn't have to wait for the promise; it was all there in the form of Lois.

Sometimes love for her would just overwhelm him. He'd wake up, turn around, or look up and see her, and then he'd find it impossible to look away. His heart would jerk, and the breath would catch in his throat with gratitude that providence had favoured him by crossing his path with Lois' once again. On those occasions he'd wonder how he hadn't know all along that she was meant to be his; and pledged anew that he'd treasure this new chance that he'd been given.

Moving to sit on the bed beside her, he bent down and pressed his lips gently against her forehead.

Turning his head he saw that Fred was sitting in the same posture that he'd held previously, and reaching over, stroked the dog's head "You need her too don't you boy?" The dog ruffed softly in response.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

When Clark called his mom to let her know that he wouldn't be able to go and see her, he'd barely gotten the words out before she told him that Chloe had already called her. She'd no sooner finished telling him that, than she informed him that she'd already packed a bag, and was waiting for his call so that he could come and pick her up.

"Mom, Lo's ok and..."

"And nothing, what if you get a Superman call?" She interrupted to ask.

"The professionals can handle it mom, Lois is my priority right now."

"I know sweetie, but if something happens that requires Superman's aid in particular, I know that you won't be comfortable just ignoring it, nor will you want to leave Lois alone either?" She pointed out gently.

He smiled lopsided "True, I want to push everything except Lo aside right now, but that's not always possible."

"No it's not, and I want to be there to look after my future daughter in law if or when you can't; so please come and get me honey."

"Ok mom, look Lo's sleeping and Fred's sitting guard beside her, so I'll come and get you. Let me just call Chloe first alright?"

At the affirmative response, he hung up, called his friend and when she also told him that she wanted to come, he rolled his eyes heavenward "Chlo, mom's coming and I promise that Lois is ok. She's doped up from the tablets and is sleeping right now, but when she wakes up I'll have her call you ok?" When she began to protest he rubbed his brow "I don't have work tomorrow Chloe, but you do. So how about I pick you up tomorrow night, and bring you for the weekend?"

He heard the huff of impatience before she gave in ungraciously "Ok, but don't have her call me tonight, she'll probably be too tired. However, don't forget that we're three hours ahead, so leave there to pick me up no later than 2pm tomorrow."

He rolled his eyes again "I won't forget Chlo, promise."

He hung up, charged Fred with the duty to keep sentinel over Lois, left and returned 20 minutes later with his mom to find both his girlfriend, and the dog exactly as he'd left them.

While his mom sat with Lois, Clark put on the kettle to make fresh coffee and once made the two sat in the family area off the kitchen; him in the recliner facing the bedroom, and his mom on the couch.

"After I have this cuppa I'll check to see if Eva's made dinner." He nodded gratefully at his mother's words "More than likely she made something since Lois came home today, but I'll check. Lois will likely be hungry when she wakes up, and even likelier that she'll fall back asleep soon afterwards, so I want something ready either way. I'll also make something for us since Eva wouldn't have known that we'd be here."

"Thanks mom, and thanks for coming."

"I didn't intend to be anywhere else from the minute Chloe called me." She told him truthfully.

He scrubbed his hand over his face and shook his head "I wish I knew that Lois had been hurt earlier."

"You were busy sweetie; Chloe called me directly after you left work, so I know that you came here as soon as you found out what happened."

"Yeah but still...on the one hand if I'd found out about her accident this morning, I would have come here instead of going into work, and right now I'd probably be unemployed. I wouldn't care a damn about that except there's no way I'm going to let Lois be the sole breadwinner in our relationship." He sipped his coffee and sighed heavily "However, knowing that her friends were looking after her because I was unavailable doesn't sit well either."

Martha smiled crookedly "You are so like your father."

He smiled back amused "Believe me I can well understand why he wasn't keen on you being the wage earner when he was laid up. It wasn't all because you were working with Lionel Luthor, it was partly pride y'know?"

She nodded slowly "I know."

He shrugged unconcerned "Well, I know that between the two of us Lo makes more than I do, and that doesn't bother me, but I don't want to be a kept man either."

Her lips twitched "I doubt that will ever happen honey." She tilted her head curiously "So how's the courtship going?"

"It's going great mom" He smiled slowly and tacked on softly "Lois is crazy about me."

"Did she say that?" At his nod, she smiled wider "And yet two days after meeting you again, she sat in my kitchen and said that she was done with love."

"I know, she hasn't said that she loves me, but crazy about me is right up there, so I'm not complaining." He smiled quietly before sharing what was most important to him "In the first few months of our relationship Lo and I grew closer, slowly got to know each other again and established boundaries; well to be honest, she put them up and I respectfully kept moving them..." He tacked on with satisfaction "But it's only in the last few months that things have really changed. She turns to me now mom. If she's having a bad day, or just wants to talk or needs to vent, she doesn't pretend that she's fine or tries to push me away; she turns to me." He shrugged lightly "Not that she gets upset often; I mean she yells, get's annoyed etc, but that's Lois and I knew it already, but now it's just different."

"I'm glad sweetie. Lois was always a private person, but if she's turning to you that means she trusts, and she was never one to trust lightly or blindly." Martha replied gently.

"Yeah."

"Have the two of you talked about your respective marriages?"

He shook his head "No, when we first got together, she just told me that she was done with relationships, but we've never talked about it."

"Well she wasn't completely done, since she has gotten involved with you despite what she said." He bobbed his head in accord "But are you comfortable with the fact that the two of you haven't discussed your marriages?" She smiled lightly "I remember once upon a time, you were very much into discussing everything."

"I got that from my parents." He huffed out a small laugh causing Martha's smile to grow bigger "And falling for a girl like Lana didn't help. She was also big on discussing everything; she wasn't so great at listening mind you, but she loved to share her views and feelings." He rolled his eyes, before smiling lightly "Lo's different; she'll chatter on about this or that, but the important stuff she keeps to herself until she feels comfortable enough to share, which she's now doing with me. She's also not one to live in the past, which is possibly why she's never asked about my marriage nor talked about hers. She told me once that if I wanted to see someone else to tell her first, because cheating hurts more than honesty. So I don't know if her ex-husband did that to her or not, but one thing I can say, is that Lois has never once said to me 'Joe did this or that', as if looking for ways...negative ways to compare me to her ex-husband."

"That's a good sign sweetie." He nodded in agreement, Martha's brow wrinkled in curiosity "That was his name; Joe?"

"Yeah, well Joseph; but that's all I know." He shrugged carelessly "He was fool enough to let her go and now she's mine; as far as I'm concerned that's what's important."

"You should be happy that he was fool enough to let her go." She put in lightly.

He grinned quick and bright "I am."

"Well I've seen the way Lois has blossomed and changed since you brought her to the farm; and I remember when you came to live with me after your marriage broke up. You seemed to be more unfettered than anything and I was glad about that."

He grimaced lightly "Yeah well I'd already lived through the misery, the gloom and the regret; actually you and Chloe lived through it with me." She nodded and smiled slowly in agreement "By then I was burnt out from feeling anything, except glad that it was all over save the formalities."

She bobbed her head "But did you ever feel like Lois did, that you were done with love?"

"No, I just knew that I'd made a mistake, but resolved to be a lot smarter the next time." He paused for a brief moment "I really do believe that destiny is giving me a second shot at happiness with Lois mom, and I'm grateful for it."

"Maybe it's giving you a second shot now because you're ready for it now sweetie; years ago you weren't. You claimed that Lana was your destiny, but that was because you wanted to live an ordinary life. However, when you were no longer content with that, you accepted that you're not ordinary, you're extraordinary and that's a pretty special thing to be."

"Yeah, and when I woke up to myself and desired more out of life than just baling hay, and keeping an eye out for slugs, armyworm, rootworm beetles and other pests that attack corn, I wasn't satisfied with my life anymore." He shrugged regretfully "I can't blame Lana for that mom, she didn't change; I did. I was no longer content with being an average guy."

"Lana wasn't completely blameless Clark." She reminded her son evenly.

"No, but I can't blame her for my selective ignorance of what she was really like mom; that was my fault not hers. You know the saying 'absence makes the heart grow fonder'?" She nodded slowly "Well in my case it was true. Lana and I weren't separated by physical distance, but the longer we weren't together the more I was convinced that my life was desolate without her. However, there's another saying that was even more distressingly true in my case, 'familiarity breeds contempt'." He lifted his shoulders in a half hearted shrug "The longer we were married, and the more accustomed I became to Lana, the more I just couldn't stand her. That of course just made it harder to tolerate all the things that I'd never liked about her but used to overlook, and eventually it wore me down until everything she did or said just got under my skin and ....irritated." He paused and smiled lopsided "It wasn't Lana that wanted the separation or divorce mom, it was me. On my twenty-eighth birthday, I finally admitted that I couldn't live like that for another day. All I could see were years and years of the same endless crap, and I knew that I had to get out because I felt like I was suffocating."

"How do you know the same things not going to happen with Lois someday?" Martha asked pointedly.

"Because with Lois I don't try and ignore her less than pleasant personality traits mom. I don't try and delude myself that she's flawless, don't waste time rebuilding a pedestal to place her on, and I don't blame someone else when she's behaving like a bitch." He smiled in genuine humour "Hell, Lo's never tried to make excuses for her shortcomings, and that's something I remember about her from way back when. With Lo what you see is what you get; a woman who's private but not crafty or secretive. She's blunt, funny, challenging, honest to the point of rudeness, and sweet. She's a little bit of everything and I love that."

"And that's what love is honey; it's not turning a blind eye to, or justifying a person's flaws and imperfections, it's accepting them as they are warts and all, and loving them anyway." She smiled gently "You were happier from the day you separated from Lana, and you'd no sooner returned from your training when you met Lois again, and I don't think I've ever seen you so happy."

"I never have been, not even on the day I married Lana. Then I felt relieved, the long wait was finally over. I no longer had to worry about being alone or lonely, I'd finally won the girl of my dreams." He rolled his eyes to the ceiling "Of course a few years later, I was lonelier than I'd ever been while growing up, and my dream had turned into a nightmare."

"And now?" She asked with a small smile.

"Now, god mom now I'm just happy because I love. I don't worry about being bereft, peculiar, one of a kind; nothing. I don't want Lois just so that I'll have someone, I just love her and that's all." He finished with a quiet smile.

Smiling through her tears, Martha put her empty cup down, got up and stepping around the coffee table, hugged him tight "You've finally gotten it right honey, that's it exactly." After pressing a kiss to the top of his head she smiled "Now, I'm just going to check to see if there's any dinner ready, and if not I'll make a start on it."

When she began to pick up the tray, Clark gently took it out of her hands, and carried it to the island "Lo's still asleep, but I'm just going to sit with her ok, mom?"

"Of course sweetie, you go."

***

Lois floated toward consciousness as the pain began to make itself felt. Wincing slightly, she started to turn, but stopped when her ribs began to hurt, and the fire in her arm stoked higher.

"I'm here baby." At Clark's voice, her lashes fluttered up to fasten somewhat blurrily on his face "Do you wanna sit up?"

"Please."

He helped her up carefully, fluffed the pillows, and once she was settled, reached over to pick up the glass of water and tablets sitting on the bedside table "Here Lo, you have to take these for the pain."

She swallowed the tablets then rested her head back against the headboard, wincing when the bed jiggled. Turning her head slightly, she wasn't surprised to see the dog with his paws and upper body on the bed looking at her. Reaching out with her good arm Lois patted the mutt "Hey Freddy."

Not content with her hand, the animal jumped, and would have landed on the bed with a thud if Clark hadn't zipped around to catch him in time "Lo, where..?"

She patted the bed beside her "Put him here, if need be we can change the bedding before going to sleep tonight." Nodding he put the dog down carefully beside her, and had to smile when the mutt put his paw in her lap and snuffled into her side.

Threading her fingers through his fur, she smiled slightly at the big baby who was slowly trying to crawl into her lap "I'm ok boy, just a little sore." She patted the bed, and the dog inched backwards, until his body was on the bed, but left his head in her lap.

"Is he too heavy Lo?" Clark asked softly.

"No he's fine now; he sometimes just forgets how heavy he is." Shifting to get more comfortable, she turned her head and smiled at Clark "When did you get here?"

"A few hours ago." He moved to sit on the bed beside her, picked up the hand that was in the cast, and leaning forward pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth "I should have been here last night."

"I wasn't home last night."

"I know but if I had been here, the doctor wouldn't have insisted you stay in the hospital because you had no one at home."

She lifted a hand to his cheek and smiled drowsily "I've been in the hospital for a few days and could have come home after the second day if I'd wanted to. A few of my friends offered to stay with me, but they have their husbands and/or families to look after, so I stayed in the hospital and I was fine."

"I wish that I'd checked my message machine at least." At the curiosity on her face, he explained "I got home late yesterday afternoon, called and left you a message, spoke to mom for a few minutes and then pretty much crashed and burned. I almost fell asleep having a shower, so just went to bed without even checking if I had any calls." He sighed and rubbed his free hand over the back of his neck "I'm sorry baby, I should have..."

"Clark you've been busy with the JLA so of course you were tired. I was perfectly fine in the hospital, which is why I didn't come home even when my friends offered to say with me." She smiled lopsided "It was Fred that I was worried about, but Carly said that she'd look after him, so it was all good."

"And when you left today, the doctor was happy for you to be at home alone was he?" Clark asked patiently.

"No, but I wasn't going to be alone. Carly told me that Freddy was getting fidgety without me here, so I gave in to her arguments to come home, and she was going to stay with me." She looked down to find her dog was lying on his back looking up at her. Her lips curved as her eyes lifted back to Clark's "Anyway, if you got home yesterday, then I'm guessing the Justice League prevailed."

"Yeah we did, but don't change the subject." He returned firmly "I should have been here yesterday; or more precisely, I should have stopped you from being hurt in the first place."

She shook her head carefully "Unless you can see into the future, you couldn't have known this was going to happen."

"I should have known." He countered steadily.

"You have a lot of powers Clark, but you're not omniscient or omnipotent. Firstly you had a lot more important things on your mind than one minor car accident. And secondly, even if you had known you couldn't have done anything because you were busy helping to keep the world safe." When his mouth tightened, she forged on logically "You don't know everything that's going on all over the world, and even if you did, you couldn't be in two places at the same time anyway so...."

"Damn it Lois will you shut up!" He cut in growling impatiently. When she recoiled in surprise, and just as suddenly flinched with pain, he winced in sympathy and asked consolingly "Are you ok baby?"

"What the hell do you think? Oh, that's right you're Superman! You don't know what pain is unless Kryptonite's around." She gritted out between clenched teeth "The next time you tell me to shut up; I'm going to get some, shove it down your throat, and then ask if you're feeling ok?" She finished by glaring at him and rubbing her ribs.

He chuckled lightly, and reached out to rub her abdomen "I'm sorry Lo." After a moment he cupped her face in his palms "Babe, everything you said was right and logical, and I don't give a flying damn about any of it. I'm glad that I have powers that allow me to help where I can, but it's YOU that I **NEED** to protect, because without you I don't have anything." He heard her heart leap, but kept his eyes steady "I love you Lois; I don't have a crush on you, I'm not just sweet on you or smitten; I'm all of that and more; I'm in love with you."

"You love me."

"Yes." He confirmed softly "I've loved you from the night I first saw you again in the restaurant, and every day I love you more."

"You love me." She repeated gingerly.

"Don't let it scare you Lo, I know that you're wary..."

"I'm not scared." She cut in quickly, before blowing out a soft breath "I'm...god; yes I am. I am scared. I don't do so well when it comes to love, my track records not that great and..."

"I don't care about your track record, look at mine." He interrupted to point out candidly "This is you and me now, and the past is just that." Leaning forward he pressed his lips gently against hers "I love you sweetheart, and as far as I'm concerned, past mistakes can go to hell."

Her lips curved softly, leaning forward she leant her forehead against his, only to pull back a moment later, to quickly lift her hand to her throbbing head "I shouldn't have done that."

He caught her hand, leant forward to lightly press his lips against the lump on her forehead, before bringing her hand to his lips "Are you gonna run?"

She shook her head carefully "No, I'm not gonna run."

"That's good, because you wouldn't have gotten very far; I would have spent my life chasing you around the world." He avowed sincerely.

She chuckled lightly and squeezed his hand "I love you too."

He closed his eyes tight, letting her words soak down deep into his soul. When his eyes opened and fastened onto hers, the breath caught in her throat at the fierceness in his "I'm not going to let you take it back." He told her softly.

She tugged her hand free carefully and sat it on the side of cheek "I'm not going to take it back, but..."

"But nothing...." He broke in tenderly "....the past is the past, and the future is what we make of it. It's our baby, yours and mine; our life together started over 8 months ago, and it's going to last for the rest of our lives." Slipping his arms around her waist, he hugged her lightly and let out a deep heartfelt sigh.

***

_Later that night_

Martha lay in bed and smiled tearfully up at the ceiling. When she heard voices earlier, she'd assumed that Lois had woken up at last, and had given her son a few minutes alone with her, before going to ask if the younger woman felt like something to eat. However she'd no sooner reached the doorway than she'd heard Lois say that she loved her boy.

She'd retreated soft footed back to the kitchen, took a seat in the family area and found it hard to stop smiling.

When Clark came out 10 minutes later with Fred to feed the dog and let her know that Lois was hungry, she'd prepared a tray for the invalid and another for her son so he could eat with her. When he told her they both wanted her to join them, she'd gladly done so, and couldn't help noting that her son found it hard to stop smiling. Lois was too tired and sore to look anything other than drowsily content, and she hadn't been surprised when the young woman had fallen asleep halfway through dinner.

As for herself, she felt blessed. She had a wonderful son whom she loved with all her heart, and he'd found happiness with a woman that she not only loved, but liked.

Turning over, she closed her eyes and brought her husband's face into her mind's eye. One day she'd be with Jonathan again and then the two of them could watch over their boy together, joyful as the life he'd already started to build with Lois, continued to flourish.

***

Clark looked at Lois while she slept, his eyes traced over her face while his heart continued to dance a jig. Even now, hours later he still couldn't stop smiling, could still see the expression on her face and in her eyes when she said 'I love you too.' Four simple words and yet they'd changed everything. The last time he'd felt like this was the night he'd met her again. That night he'd lain in bed and felt more alive than he ever had before, and yet how he'd felt then paled in comparison to how he felt now.

8 and a half months ago he'd gone out to dinner unaware that his whole life was about to change; then he'd seen Lois and it had. Less than a week ago he'd woken up to find her gazing at him and it had changed again by what he'd seen in her eyes. And just a few hours ago it was changed once more by hearing her say that she loved him. She loved him; there were no sweeter words in the English language.

Leaning forward, he pressed his lips against hers softly, slipped his arm over her waist to hold her carefully while she slept, and continued looking at his love.

**

Authors Note: I used to love Super Friends when I was a kid, I don't remember much of it, but I do remember that I used to love it. So when I tried to think of what to call the band of villains and found in Super Friends they were called 'The Legion of Doom' I thought that was just way too precious not to use. When I further read that Lex called Clark, 'Stupidman', I screamed with laughter, and knew that I had to use that as well. Unfortunately I can't take credit for either of those, but gees I really really wish that I could.

Linda


	28. Chapter 28

Thank you to everyone for the feedback, it's much appreciated. I'm so pleased that you're all enjoying the story. As you can tell the story is winding down, but it's not quite over yet; so I hope you enjoy the rest as much as what came before.

Linda

**

**Chapter 28**

_Two Weeks Later_

Clark landed in the backyard, set Lois down carefully, unlocked the back door and gave the house a quick sweep with his x-ray vision, before pointing over his shoulder with his thumb "I've put our bags in the bedroom, and I'll unpack them when I get back with Fred, ok babe?"

"Ok." Lois stepped inside the house, grateful that he'd switched on the kitchen and hall lights when he'd brought their bags prior to dropping her off. Staying at the farm the past two weeks had been enjoyable, and the arrangement had worked out beautifully for all of them.

They'd initially intended to stay in Seattle, but by the end of the first weekend had given that idea up as a bad joke. Three times between Friday and Sunday afternoon Clark returned from a Superman call to find her friends visiting to see how she was. It wasn't the visits anyone minded, it was that they were almost reduced to playing charades just so that he could go along with the lies his mom, she or Chloe had given for his absence. So when Martha hesitantly suggested transferring to the farm, they'd all cried 'yes' so heartily, anyone would think she'd just offered to lead them all to Nirvana.

In the end it had saved Clark from taking time off work, while also giving him the freedom to shoot off at moment's notice if required. Her friends were spared their lousy acting and the lies they'd perpetuated, and her neighbours didn't get the opportunity to be suspicious about anything. Chloe could come after work with Clark if or when she wanted to, while at the same time, Martha didn't have to be away from her own life and friends. And Fred; well he just loved to bask in the great outdoors and all the attention lavished on him from three females for a solid two weeks. He'd also enjoyed dumping them to play with Clark when it suited him to do so. As for herself; she'd enjoyed every moment of it. The first few days she'd slept a lot, but after that she'd gotten a kick out of spending time with Martha during the day; and one time even enjoyed a girly gossip and afternoon tea session with the older woman and her friends. That had been fun, and she was certainly looking forward to spending time with them all again in future.

Stepping into the bedroom, Lois smiled. Tonight she was looking forward to sleeping in her own bed. Staying at the farm was great, and she always enjoyed it but it was also nice to come home once again.

Picking up a bag from the floor, she kneed it onto the bed and attempted to unlock it without success. Swearing softly, she pushed down on the lid with her cast, used the fingers of her good hand to snap open the lock and sighed in satisfaction at the snick. After opening the case, she pulled out some clothes, tossed them on the bed and swung around guiltily at the voice behind her.

"Lo I said that I'd put our clothes away."

"I know but I hate feeling useless."

"You're not useless; the problem is that you only have one good arm at the moment." Clark remarked gently, before proceeding to zip around the room putting everything where it belonged, and storing their cases once again. Taking a seat on the bed beside her a minute later he smiled "And as you can see, it doesn't take me any effort at all."

"Show off." She pressed a hand against her mouth to stifle a yawn then cocked her head "Where's Fred?"

"He's becoming reacquainted with the house by sniffing around." Leaning forward he pressed his lips against her cheek, and smiled when she tried to stifle another yawn "How about we go to bed, it's pretty late."

"It's only 7." She replied somewhat drowsily.

"Yeah, but we're still on Smallville time so it's actually 10, which granted isn't very late but we're not used to staying up until all hours anyway."

"True."

After helping her to change into a nightdress, he thumbed towards the doorway when she stepped towards the bathroom for her nightly ablutions "I'll just go and check to see if Fred's ok, secure the house and be back in a minute."

When he returned five minutes later it was to find Lois in bed, and fast asleep. After brushing his teeth and having a quick shower he returned to the bedroom, slipped under the covers, spooned around her, and pressed his face into her hair.

Damn, he'd been giving Lois plenty of time to rest and recuperate, but had hoped that on their first night home they'd make love. Well that wasn't happening. Holding her close at night was nice, but he missed her; oh who was he kidding, he missed sex. He'd gotten spoiled; he was used to falling asleep with Lois after they made love. It was a rare night when they didn't; actually it was only when they had visitors stay over, or at certain times of the month when she said no. He'd had more cold showers in the past two weeks than he'd had in years, and frankly....they sucked.

When his fingers touched the cast on her arm, he silently called himself every filthy name under the sun for being insensitive, then cursed again when she turned around, slid her leg between his, laid her casted arm on his waist, and pressed her face into his neck. God she smelled wonderful, her leg between his silky smooth, and why did he put a nightdress on her anyway; what the hell was that all about? He didn't mind her wearing nightclothes to bed, in fact he was more than happy for her to do so, as long as he got the pleasure of taking them off her lickety-split, after he'd gotten a good long eye full first.

His hand trailed down the satin of her nightdress, slipped under the hem to gently rub over her bottom, then up to stroke along the smooth warm skin of her back. The whole time they'd been at the farm she'd slept in nightclothes, but they were home now, and enough was enough. Sitting up carefully to ensure that he didn't dislodge her unduly, Clark lifted Lois up slightly with one arm, and used his free hand to slide her nightdress up, but was stymied by her arms. He didn't want to wake her up but he did want her naked; chewing his lip indecisively, he shrugged and whispered "Lift your arms baby." Her good arm automatically lifted, he slid the material up and over her shoulder, then gently drew it over her head, down over her casted arm before tossing the nightdress aside, and placing her gently back down. Lying down again, his arms slid around her waist to draw her close until her breasts were pillowed against his chest. A little sigh of delight escaped his lips, a low hum followed a moment later when she wiggled closer and slid her leg between his once again; this was much better. Now he could actually feel every feminine curve moulded against his without the barrier of cloth in the way. Satin and silk was all very well, but they didn't even come close to feeling as sensuous as her skin against his.

He loved Lois' sexy nightdresses, he loved it when she dressed up in something trashy that she'd found in novelty store, but naked was always his favourite.

His lips curved upward in recollection at the time shortly after he'd told her about his fantasies. He'd arrived home to find her sitting on a stool at the kitchen island, with his spare set of glasses perched on the tip of her nose while pretending to read a book. Her long beautiful legs were crossed, her feet shod in killer heels, and she was wearing a frilly blue checked apron. It hadn't taken him long to discover she was wearing nothing more than the apron, the shoes and his glasses. At the time he didn't know whether to fall to his knees with his tongue hanging out, or to laugh when she turned around slowly and whispered 'help Superman, help, help'. He'd managed to resist blathering, had quickly spun into the suit and gotten into the spirit of things, more than ready for a round of fun and games; and fun they'd had.

He loved all her passionate sides, from the playful sex kitten, to the sensuous seductive woman, the impatient 'I want you NOW' hellcat, to the soft ardent lover. He also delighted in anything she wore, because every single time he undressed her, it was like he was unwrapping his own personal gift.

Pressing his lips to her cheek, he tucked her in closer, breathed in the scent of her skin and drifted off to sleep.

***

_Next Day_

While Lois set the table for lunch, Clark pulled the tray out of the warmer, and decided that now was the time to remind his girlfriend about the house.

"The realtor took me through the house yesterday Lo..." At her light frown, he prompted "The one in Metropolis that I told you about."

She nodded and set the forks beside their plates "Did you like it inside as much as outside?"

"Yeah, I'd already checked it out with x-ray but seeing it was better." He replied setting the garlic bread on the table before returning to the oven.

Lois' brow wrinkled once again "How come the house is still available?"

He shrugged nonchalant "I asked her that and the realtor explained that not many people want the hassle of upkeep when renting a somewhat ample house with even bigger lawns; so in a way I'm lucky that Fred's large enough that I wanted the space." When she glanced at her dog and smiled in agreement, he continued "Anyway, I thought we could go and see it sometime today or tomorrow. If not we'll have to wait for next weekend, and I really don't want to take the chance that someone else might coming along and snatch it out from under me."

"Well it's up to you; but if we're going today then we need to go soon so that we can inspect the house in the daylight, or we can go tomorrow after breakfast."

He grinned, grabbed the spaghetti and after setting it on the table, clasped her good hand to squeeze "How about we go tomorrow, then we can check out the house, and afterwards stroll through the Sunday market along the riverfront."

She nodded then shook her head "We're taking Fred remember; he'll feel claustrophobic by the press of people."

"I'll bring him home before we go to the market." Clark supplied readily.

"Ok."

Letting go of her hand, he returned for the condiments, she grabbed the napkins and set them beside their plates, and once Fred was fed the two sat down to eat.

While her two guys played in the back yard after lunch, Lois watched them through the kitchen window and smiled.

They'd been together for only 9 months, and yet Clark was willing to rent a house just so that she wouldn't have to put her dog in the kennel when she visited Metropolis. How many men would go that far just to keep their girlfriend happy?

She really was lucky; she'd expected their relationship to have petered out by now, well it just went to show that even at 36 years of age she could still get it wrong. What had Carly said the morning after she'd first spent the night with Clark?

Her brow furrowed, her eyes narrowed; what _had_ Carly said? She was describing the way Clark had been looking at them in the restaurant. Her friend said that he was smiling in their general direction, but it was her that he was focused on, her face that his eyes didn't budge from. Then her friend told her to trust her instincts.

Well her instincts were clamouring now. She'd told Clark their relationship was going to be casual, but she couldn't remember any one time when he'd agreed with her.

The first night she told him that she didn't want a relationship, he'd replied they could see each other while she was in Metropolis, that he'd come to see her when she returned to Seattle, and then they could take it from there. He hadn't disagreed with her, but neither had he agreed.

Giving him one last long look, Lois tapped her chin and moved to sit on the couch in the family area.

When she reminded him again the next day that all she wanted was a casual fling, he said that he was willing to take things slow and see how it went; he'd fielded her words. When he'd asked if she wanted them to make love, she'd corrected him and called it sex, but he hadn't rephrased his wording. Basically, he'd made agreeable noises both times, but he hadn't actually concurred.

He'd come to see her two days after she left Metropolis and proposed spending the weekends with her in Seattle. When she'd pointed out that he could date women who lived closer to him, he'd said.....

30 minutes later Clark came into the house with Fred hard on his heels and found Lois in quiet contemplation curled up on the couch.

"Baby are you ok?" At the lack of response, he sat beside her and tried again "Lo..."

"Hmm what?"

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine, just thinking about some stuff." She smiled and patted his hand.

He nodded slowly, looked at Fred lying on the floor beside the couch, and grabbing the remote switched the TV on "Do you feel like watching anything in particular Lo?"

"No you go ahead."

At the absent tone in her voice he nodded again, but had a feeling that he knew what she was thinking about. Since walking into the house, Lois' eyes had been plastered to his face, but her mind was elsewhere. As the look on her face was one of reflection, overlaid with purpose, he was pretty sure that his goose was cooked.

Deciding his best bet was not to say anything he surfed through the channels for a while, before settling on a documentary. Pretending an absorption in the program, he wondered how long it would be before Lois started to screech.

As one memory after another rushed rapidly through her head, Lois chewed her lip, brought back moments and conversations, backtracked here and there; and finally her eyes widened in comprehension.

Shaking her head in amazement, she turned to face her boyfriend fully "You rotten bastard, you totally conned me."

Oh oh, he knew it; she'd finally caught onto him. He'd known by the look on her face that she was busy chewing over their relationship, and had fully expected her to have him figured out before too long, so her words didn't come as a complete surprise. However, figuring that discretion, ignorance and an engrossment in the program was his safest hidey hole for now, Clark slipped an arm around Lois' waist, and cuddled her closer against his side but couldn't stop the tiny smile from kicking up at the corner of his mouth "Lo do you mind, I'm trying to watch this very interesting program on...." He trailed off not having a clue what the hell he was watching.

"On...?" She encouraged sweetly.

He focused harder on the screen, saw the fisherman cast the line and burst out "On fly fishing, and your yammering is not making it easy."

She let out a scoffing laugh, and cupping his chin turned his face towards hers "You don't fish."

"I might...." At her lifted brows he tacked on snootily "....someday."

She grabbed the remote from his hand, switched the TV off and when his mouth opened, she smiled gently "How'd you do it?"

"Do what?"

Despite the innocence in his voice, she heard the smug tone under it "Clark Kent don't you dare pretend that you don't know what I'm talking about."

"I think you're getting paranoid babe, I've heard that can happen to women over 30."

Lifting her good hand, she grabbed onto his ear and twisted "I know this doesn't hurt you, but it makes me feel better." She twisted harder then let go with a sigh "You completely sneaked in under my radar; how'd you do it?"

He dredged up the most guiltless smile in his arsenal and let it shine "What are you talking about woman? You're the professional con, not me; I'm just a sweet farm boy from Kansas."

She snorted indignantly in response "Like hell, first you conned me into letting you stay on the weekends, then you talked me into dating you exclusively, that was shortly followed by your suggestion to stay over a couple of nights during the week; which turned out to be every night I might add....."

"You forgot to mention that before I talked you into letting me stay over during the week, I also got you to agree that you were my girlfriend." He cut in to remind her happily.

She shook her head incredulous "How in the hell did I fall for it?"

He pecked her nose with smiling lips "You fell for my charm."

"I fell for what you blatantly carry around in your pants." She replied indignantly "You did a complete role reversal on me; initially you suckered me in with sex and now…"

"Now…" He trailed off helpfully.

She narrowed her eyes and hissed "Now you know very well that I love you."

He laughed in sheer delight and picking her up, sat her in his lap "Lois from the moment I saw you in that restaurant, which by the way was before Chloe even approached you, I'd already told everyone at my table that I was going to marry you." The look on her face was so dumfounded, that he couldn't resist bending down to capture her lips in a soft kiss and confessing gently "Sweetheart, you were mine from that night."

"You played the innocent farm boy to the hilt...." She began, only to trail off as her eyes widened in shock "Oh my god! The day after I met your mom, I told her that I didn't think Chloe would fall for the farm boy type, and when she said that that can happen to the best of us; I said...." Lois broke off chuckling.

"What?" Clark encouraged with a grin, between giggles she continued "I said, not me; give me a nerd with glasses any day of the week."

He let out a bark of laughter and hugged her one armed "Well, well, well Ms Lane; it seems that you did indeed fall for the nerd with glasses, he just happened to be a farm boy. Which as my mom pointed out, even the best could fall for." He finished smugly.

She elbowed him "Shut up."

He pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth and smiled "Well, I remember the next day you saved me from that guy with the sword arm when I took off to find Chloe by myself. If you hadn't turned up when you did Lo, I honestly don't know if I'd be here now; its 17 years late but thank you for saving me that day." She shook her head in amusement and picking up her hand he brought it to his lips and pressed a kiss to the fingertips "God I was slow, usually it was me helping and saving people, and yet it was you who either helped or saved me several times within the first few days that we met. First you found me and took me to the Medical Centre, then instead of making my life hell by asking a lot of questions on how I was able to look after myself against fully trained army guys, you just made a joke about our adventure, and then you saved me from that guy with the sword arm. Talk about being given clue after clue and ignoring it."

"You're seeing the situation a lot more idealistically than it really was." She replied patiently.

"No I'm not; I'm finally seeing it for what it really was." He countered gently "You're the one Lo, I realised it the night I saw you in the restaurant, but looking back to when we were kids, I can remember multiple times when I was given a sign, and just didn't pay any attention."

She smiled and pressed her cheek to his "You're a romantic sap."

Clark rubbed his cheek softly against hers before lifting her off his lap to sit on the couch "I sweet talked you into everything you mentioned before...."

"No you didn't." She cut in firmly "Sweet talk is using insincere honeyed words to get what you want, and you never tried to manipulate me."

"No." He agreed with a small smile "I did use sneaky methods to keep you from running away, but I wasn't interested in manipulating you into anything, so thank you for understanding that."

"I can respect sneakiness; I did it to you more than once back in the day." She responded with a mile wide grin.

"True, but as I don't want to be sneaky, or win you over with artful double talk, I'm hoping that my next words and the sincerity behind them will be enough." He heard Lois' heart falter before speeding up, but didn't know if that was a good thing or not. Cupping her face in his hands, Clark kept his eyes steady on hers "Lo, you're the woman I'm meant to share my life with; you always were. I don't have to imagine my life without you baby, I've lived it. After saving me from sword guy years ago you said, 'how did you ever survive without me?' I know at the time you were just being cheeky, but I've asked myself that a lot over the last 9 months. I did survive without you Lo, but another way of saying survive is to endure, persevere, hang in there, and that was all I did. I really only started to live when I found you again Lois, before that I simply existed."

She wondered how it was possible to feel so happy and wretched at the same time.

He stroked her cheek softly with his thumb, and asked quietly "I don't know if you really took in what I said earlier, but I very clumsily said out loud what I hoped to ask in the right setting with the right ambiance." He took a deep breath and finished quietly "I love you Lois, and I'm asking if you will do me the very great honour of becoming my wife."

She blew out a soft breath, and placed her good hand on his cheek "Please don't take this the wrong way, but I don't want to get married again; I'm sorry."

Freeing her face, he picked up the hand in the cast to twine his fingers with hers "I know you're scared Lo, but don't let one bad experience put you off trying again. We're all entitled to a second chance at love and happiness babe."

She pressed her lips together and smiled regretfully "Second chance huh?" She dropped her hand from his cheek, and reached over to pluck a tissue from the coffee table, but instead of using it, began to shred it absently "Clark my marriage..."

"Lo, your marriage and mine will always be there. They can't be wiped out, but we shouldn't let past mistakes stop us from having a future now."

She ran a hand through her hair and shook her head "I wanna show you something." Tossing the balled up tissue on the table, she made her way to the bedroom, took out the box from the back of her cupboard, and returned to the lounge room once again to re-take her seat. Peeling off the lid, she reached inside, lifted out a photo and looked at it before handing it to him "What'd you see?"

He took the frame, looked at the picture and felt his heart ache. What he could see was Lois in a wedding dress smiling up at the man holding her in his arms. So this was Joe; he was good looking but not movie star handsome. His face shone openly with pride and elation, and he was clearly in love with his new bride. Lois looked beautiful; her hair was in long loose curls, and her face framed by the tossed back veil was one of unbound happiness. Their fingers each sported a mint new ring. This was a part of her past, but it hurt to see his love looking at another man with that expression on her face. Clark took a deep breath, let it out slowly, wrenched his eyes away and looked up "I see two people in love."

She nodded slowly "That's what everyone saw." She took the photo and put it back in the box, before replacing the lid and putting it on the coffee table "I kept that picture so that I wouldn't forget. I haven't looked at it in a long time, but..."

"Lo, I'm not Joe; I promise that I won't ever cheat on you." He cut in softly "You've given me more happiness, love and passion than I knew was possible to experience. I would never do anything that could jeopardise losing your trust, and make you take that all away from me."

She frowned lightly "Joe never cheated on me Clark; why would you think that he had?"

He shrugged half-heartedly "You said that cheating hurts more than honesty, and ..."

She sighed in understanding then looked down into her lap, and up again "I see; well Joe was never unfaithful, he's a nice decent man who deserved better than what he got from me."

Hearing the misery in her voice, he sucked in a deep breath and asked quietly "Did you cheat on him?"

She shook her head then shrugged unhappily "Not in the true meaning of the word, but I did cheat him."

"What'd you mean?"

"Joe was my second husband Clark; I got married the first time when I was 21; it's his name that I used when I began to write. We met, had a fling, got married at the registry office, and when our fling had flung itself out several months later, we shook hands and parted with no hard feelings on either side. However, that was far from my first mistake." She smiled dispiritedly and shrugged "I was engaged three times before I met Joe; I called it off each time for one reason or another, but what it really came down to was that I wasn't ready to be anyone's wife. Then I met Joe, and when he asked me marry him I said yes. I began to plan the wedding, and had no qualms that I was doing the right thing. I was ready to commit, all I'd been waiting for was the right man, and at long last I'd found him; it was Joe." She reached for a tissue, wiped her eyes and blew her nose before letting out a deep sigh "But a couple of weeks before the big day, I started to wonder if I was making a mistake. I actually woke up one morning and it no longer felt right. Can you believe it; I went to bed one night, woke up and just like that..." She snapped her fingers "...all my confident assurance that I was doing the right thing was gone."

"Did anything happen to make you feel like that?" He asked quietly.

She shook her head and let out a little sob "No, it was just me. I thought that I was experiencing the fabled cold feet people talk about; it just didn't seem possible that I could go from sure to doubtful all in a night's sleep. But just as I'd done three times before, I started to look for ways to break it off."

"Why didn't you?"

She shrugged apathetically "I don't know, I wanted to but he was nice and I just couldn't do it. All the others were nice too, but Joe was just; he was so sweet, do you know what I mean?" He nodded quietly, plucked out a tissue and handed it over. She smiled thankfully, wiped her eyes and continued "Even while I was standing there listening to the minister as he charged us with our responsibilities to each other, while he talked about the sanctity of marriage, and as I recited my vows, I kept telling myself to call it off, to just speak up, but for the first time in my life I didn't have the courage. After the die was cast and we were married I was determined to be happy no matter what, and to make Joe happy." She took a deep breath and continued softly "I thought that after all the hullabaloo with the wedding was over that all my misgivings would vanish, and I'd once again feel confident as I had before, but I didn't. Joe was the sweetest guy, but our marriage just didn't feel right. I knew that I'd made a mistake and when I asked him for a divorce, I know that I broke his heart."

"How long were you married?" He asked gently.

"Two years; we got married when I was 31 and we lasted for two years. I cheated him Clark, if I had just been honest when I started to have doubts, he wouldn't have been so devastated when I told him that I didn't love him."

"Did you ever love him?"

She shook her head minutely "No, I thought I did, and that's what makes it so much worse. Five times; two of which I married the man, I thought that I loved someone, and every time I discovered that I'd read my heart wrong. Investing so much of yourself in a relationship only to find out that you've mistaken your feelings takes a heavy toll on your self confidence." She plucked out a new tissue, blew her nose and grabbed another to wipe her eyes "It's funny, but years ago I used to think my boyfriends left because they weren't interested once the chase was over and they'd caught me. Now I can't help wondering if I drove them away in some manner. Before Joe, I thought the reason I called off my engagements was because I wasn't ready to get married until I met the right man, but now I know the problem is with me; I get bored and then look for a way out." She sighed and wiped her eyes "You told me once that you and Lana were married for 9 years, and that you were unhappy for a good portion of that time, but at least you stuck it out Clark; I couldn't even do that."

He reached for her hand again and squeezed her fingers "Lo, I shouldn't have stayed married for as long as I did." When she swallowed hard and looked at him, he smiled sadly "Yeah, I stuck it out, but don't give me any awards for it because I was miserable. Lana wasn't any happier; the two of us just didn't want to admit that we'd made a mistake. It was ego for both of us; the only difference is that eventually I thought to hell with my pride, and told her that I wanted a divorce. You at least had the guts to admit you made a mistake and set Joe free to find happiness with someone else, rather than keeping him tied to you because of egotism."

She shook her head again "I hurt him a lot Clark."

"Have you seen him since you broke up?"

"Yeah, he came to see me one day a few months before I met you again, he told me that he's met someone and that he's happy. I could see that he meant it, and I was genuinely glad for him." She paused and smiled softly "I told you that he was sweet..." Clark nodded "...well he was. He could have called me any number of names and I would deserved them all, but he never did; not once. He said that I had made him happy, that I'd never made him feel like he wasn't good enough, and then he thanked me for that." She swallowed hard and shook her head minutely "Before he left, he told me that he hoped one day that I would find someone who could make me happy in a way that he wasn't able to." She wiped under her eyes and shook her head again "I didn't earn that from him, and I didn't deserve it."

Clark lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to the tips of her fingers "He sounds like an honourable man, one who didn't want to hurt the woman he'd loved once upon a time."

"Yeah." Lois sighed heavily and looked at him sadly "I can't marry you Clark, I'm sorry but I just can't. I've gotten it wrong five times now, and the last time I really hurt a man that had done nothing to warrant it. I no longer trust my judgement when it comes to love."

He nodded slowly "You were married to Joe for two years; how long were you with the other fiancées before him."

"Joe and I were together for just over three years all told; the longest relationship I've had other than with him lasted for a year; that seems to be about par for my attention span." She replied with a cynical twist of her lips.

"A few weeks ago when I told you about the house I found, you said that if we break up in a year or so that I'll be stuck with a big house until I find an apartment. Is that what you're scared off Lo, that we're going to break up in a year because you think that you're going to become disinterested and look for a way out of the relationship?" She bobbed her head fractionally. Clark squeezed her fingers and clarified "You don't want to get married because you think that in a few years, you'll do to me what you did to Joe, correct?"

"I didn't want to love you Clark, I thought the only thing I was good at in a relationship was sex; so I decided to forget about men, and just have the occasional fling when I got the itch but you sneaked in under my guard and..." She bit her lip and shook her head in condemnation "I'm so sorry, I should have told you why I didn't want to get involved, I should have said something when you wanted us to date only each other; god I should have said no straight away."

He tilted up her chin and shook his head "Don't say that Lo, don't ever apologise for loving me or for giving us a chance." He pressed his lips gently against hers then lifted his mouth a fraction "Please don't ever be sorry for that baby, not ever."

When her chin quivered, he cupped her face in his hands and locked his eyes on hers "I love you Lois. When you told me that you loved me, I told you that the past is the past, and the future was ours, and I still believe that. I don't believe for one minute that you're going to get bored and look for a way out of our relationship." When her mouth opened, he pressed a finger against her lips "I don't Lo."

He picked her up, cuddled her into his lap and continued quietly "Let me tell you a little bit about what I do know and believe, ok?" She nodded and taking a deep breath he told her what was in his heart "As you know, years ago I believed in destiny, well I still do babe. The reason my marriage didn't work out wasn't because destiny made a mistake, it was because I did. I **chose** to marry Lana; destiny never chose her for me. Even so, we could have been happy if we had anything remotely in common but we didn't. The only thing Lana and I had in common with other couples who get married is that I'm a guy, and she's a girl; end of story." He squeezed her waist and gave a rueful smile "My marriage to Lana was doomed to failure from the very beginning, and if I'd taken my head out of the clouds just once, I would have realised it long before I recited any vows. Back then I had a childlike view of love, and insisted that she was the one even after she'd given me ample proof that she wasn't, or that she could ever make me happy. God knows why I thought getting my ring on her finger was the right thing to do, but believe me when I say that I paid for disregarding all the warning signs and marrying her anyway."

He stroked her jaw with his thumb and kept his voice firm "I'm not going to include your first marriage because that was a fly by night mistake that's happened to a lot of people; including me. Mine was caused by redK, but don't make the mistake of thinking that I didn't know what I was doing because I did; the redK just made me indifferent to my actions but that's all." She smiled dolefully in understanding, he inclined his head and got back to the point "So you married Joe, were engaged several times before him, and because you're the one who wanted to break up, you came to the erroneous conclusion that you didn't have it in you to sustain a long term relationship, but that's crap Lois. The reason my marriage failed, and you could never settle down with any of the men you were involved with; including Joe, was simply because we were always with the wrong people." He pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth, and slipped the hand on her waist around to rub softly over the small of her back "It was always meant to be us Lo; you and me. I never should have married Lana, and you shouldn't have married Joe; we should have been together all along. I don't mean that we shouldn't have had other relationships; that's part of life and a learning experience that everyone goes through, but we shouldn't have made a commitment to anyone except each other. That was where we went wrong, and that was why we both failed."

Cupping her cheek he locked his eyes with hers "You can call it following your heart, I can call it destiny; and in the long run it really makes no difference. If I had **really** followed destiny, and if you had **really** listened to your heart, we would known years ago that we had no business making vows to anyone but each other." He finished steadily.

She smiled tremulously "Thank you."

"For what baby; telling you the truth?" He asked quietly against her cheek.

She shook her head before lifting it to cup his cheek in her good hand "For not making me feel like a heel."

"You're not a heel, or I guess we both are." He smiled lopsided "I hurt Lana, you hurt Joe, so I guess it's only fair that two heels end up together."

She gave a watery laugh and nodded "What made you finally decide to call it quits with Lana?"

Clark grimaced and blew out a deep breath. Seeing the discomfiture on his face, Lois slid out of his lap, and waited. Racing to the fridge, he grabbed the wine bottle, and two glasses, came back poured them both a glass and sipped. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye, saw her waiting expectantly and asked "Why do true confessions always make you feel like an idiot?"

"Because there's nowhere left to hide afterwards." She replied promptly "C'mon, it can't be any worse than what I've just told you." When he rolled his eyes, she knocked his arm with hers "Ok, then let's start with this, when did the bloom fall off the rose?"

"A little over three years after we were married; as Lana and I were never talking or dating for long before we were fighting, I thought when she was upset about one thing or another, that it was perfectly natural and she had her reasons y'know?" Lois nodded; he nodded and rolled his eyes again "Yeah well, after living with her 24/7 for a few years, I found out that Lana could make a mountain out of any mole hill that she came across. Everything was a big deal; everything was a problem or a drama. If she had genuine worries or fears that would be something, but I finally realised that she just made everything important because she liked the attention; eventually I just got sick of it, and her."

"Well I know that the two of you couldn't go for long before there was always trouble in paradise, but what on earth were you always bickering about?"

He sipped his wine before confessing "She was usually either lambasting me or crying because I wouldn't tell her what she wanted to know. Tell me the truth Clark, why can't you trust me Clark, how can you expect me to trust you when I know that you're lying, and keeping secrets from me Clark." He sung in a mimicry of his ex-wife and shook his head "That was pretty much the basis of all our conversations and arguments; that I wouldn't spill my guts and tell her everything about myself."

"You've gotta be kidding; that was what all the carry on was about?" Lois asked incredulous.

"Yep."

"Oh my god..." She began to chortle but at his lifted brows, stifled her mirth with her hand "My boyfriends loved it when I told them how great they were at something, how sexy I found them, that kind of thing; but you were turned on by Lana calling you a liar, and....bitching at you all the time?"

He flushed and hunched his shoulders "Leave me alone; I was an overly romantic teenage boy who didn't notice the bitching."

"How could you not?" She asked in genuine astonishment "The two of you didn't date until you were 18, so if that was what most of your disputes were about, then it went on for years beforehand; so how could you not notice?"

"Not just beforehand, it also went on while we were dating and when she was with Lex." He admitted truthfully, and at the disbelief on her face reminded her snottily "Hello I was a teenage boy, she was a pretty girl; thinking with my dick."

Lois grinned jovially "Well the teenage boys I knew tended to follow Elvis' school of thought when thinking with their dicks. You know the..." She cleared her throat and began to sing "'a little less conversation a little more action please, all this aggravation ain't satisfactioning me. A little more bite and a little less bark, a little less fight and a little more spark, close your mouth and open up your heart and baby satisfy me'." She finished with a wiggle of her brows.

He grinned and nodded "They had the right idea, but I just figured that all of Lana's griping was justified, since I believed that I was in luuuurve." He mocked lightly. She nodded and patted his arm in solidarity. Sighing heavily he continued "Anyway, after she came back from her fake death I told her everything, we got married and it was all good for a while, but it wasn't long before I finally clued into the fact that she was so used to getting her own way, that when she didn't it could be pretty ugly. The only thing I never gave Lana that she wanted before her divorce from Lex, was the answer to what I was hiding; that I was alien and had powers. However, since I didn't give her that, I had to suck up all the more just to stay in her good books, which of course I was happy to do, and as that was what she was accustomed to, that was what she was expecting to be true ever after." He let out a short sharp laugh "To think for years I thought our problem was that I was hiding stuff from her, turns out the real problem was that she's just a natural born shrew."

"So what'd you do?" She asked curiously.

"Nothing at first, I tried to ignore it figuring that she'd grow up and out of it; boy was I wrong." He snorted lightly "One day about 4 years after we were married, she was carrying on about something; don't ask me what, because I'd gotten so used to tuning her out that I hardly paid any attention, but for some reason this day I'd just enough. Maybe I was just tired, I know that I was fed up to my back teeth with her grumbling, but for some reason this particular day was like the straw that broke the camel's back y'know?"

She nodded and lifted her wine to sip "Yeah some days the patience is hard to keep; and well you know me, my tolerance for bullshit has always been pretty limited, so....."

He lifted his glass in salute "Well take my word for it; after living with a woman who can't tell you what the hell her problem, is without first carping about everything under the sun, I've come to prefer your direct way of talking and confronting. It may be hard to hear at times, but it's better than being subjected to a theatrical tirade wondering what burr is up your butt, before you decide to get to the point." Lois bit her lip; Clark's lips twitched "So as I was saying, that day I'd just had a gut full and when I couldn't take it anymore I yelled; oh for god's sake Lana, will you just shut the fuck up and stop bloody whining."

Lois coughed out the sip of wine she'd taken and commented politely "I bet that shut her up fast."

He barked out a laugh and nodded "Kind off, she squealed like a stuck pig and then she began to cry."

Lois pressed a hand against her mouth to stop the laughter from spilling out "What does a stuck pig sound like?"

"Tell Lana to shut the fuck up and you'll know." He grinned wickedly.

Leaning forward with interest she asked eagerly "So then what happened?"

"Well I felt bad for yelling, so calmly told her that she didn't need to carry on. If she had a problem or an issue, we could discuss it like adults, but to stop acting like a kid because she wasn't one."

"And she?"

"Pouted." He replied succinctly before taking a sip of his drink.

Lois lifted her hand quickly and began to chew on her nail. He cocked his head to the side and smiled ruefully "Do you wanna know when I reached the lowest point in my marriage?"

She nodded and gestured with her drink for him to go on.

He rubbed his hand over the back of his neck and told her what he'd never told anyone "We were in Metropolis just shopping while waiting to go and see a play. It was our sixth anniversary; god knows why we were bothering since neither of us was happy. She was whining about something, and as had become customary I wasn't paying any attention when I felt someone staring. So I turned around and there was Lex; he was just standing there, very casually smirking at me."

He paused to sip his drink, noted her lips were twitching and nodded gravely "Yeah, so he walked over and in a very conversational voice said; 'Y'know, LuthorCorp made an absolute killing in the market last financial year, but my elation over that was nothing, compared to how thrilled I feel today seeing the two looking just as blissfully happy as you always did. I can only imagine how fortunate you must feel Clark, hearing the dulcet tone of Lana's voice in your ear every day, crying or moaning about one thing or another. Looking up to find her sitting across from you at the breakfast table, and then at dinner; yep there she is again, still sniveling or nitpicking. Going to sleep beside her at night and the sour expression on her face is dancing behind your lids, waking up in the morning and the first thing to greet your day is the pouty little sulk on her face. Every….where you turn, there...she...is.' Then he turned to her, shook his head sadly and said 'Oh Lana, I honestly tried to see things from your point of view, but I just found it impossible to get my head that far up my ass. However, I'm sure we all remember how determined Clark was to do it, and he's clearly a lot more flexible than I am, since he succeeded where I failed'. After that he turned back to me and with a look of unholy glee on his face said 'Oh Clark, it really does my heart good to know that my old friend's destiny, the one he fought so hard for, has come to fruition. I can't think of anyone who deserves to be doomed; oh excuse my faux pas, I mean _blessed_ with a lifetime of Lana more than you do; and I sincerely wish you both a very, VERY long life."

"Ouch!" Lois drew back, and swallowed the giggle that wanted to pop out.

"Ouch is right, but he was far from done." He huffed out a laugh. "In a very jovial manner he then said 'being a spectator to your romance was such a pleasant experience. Watching the two of you fight, make up, break up, get back together, break up, get back together, break up, get back together; going back _time after time_ for more of the same. Why it was as beautiful as watching a dog forcing itself to regurgitate, only to turn around and eat its own vomit again. So tell me, in your relationship which one of you was the mongrel, and which one of you was the puddle of sick?' He looked between us interestedly and when we declined to answer, he just nodded affably and pronounced "Yes, it's a really hard call, but I think you took it in turns myself."

"And you just stood there without saying anything?" Lois asked with a huge grin.

Clark flushed deep red "I was tempted but what could I say since he was bloody well right. Lana tried to make him look foolish but she was totally outclassed and Lex proved it when he just turned it around to make us look like even bigger idiots. She said, 'you're just bitter because I left you for Clark, but please remember that your father had to blackmail me to marry you, whereas you married me of your own free will Lex.' Well he just nodded agreeably then leant in close and whispered 'so I did, but _you_ please remember that I was admitted to Belle Reeve by my loving father, and underwent voluntary head treatment a second time at another institution. So I clearly wasn't totally compos mentis back then my dear and I have the medical records to prove it. Do either of you have a defence that's anywhere near as good for YOUR behaviour?"

Lois sputtered out a laugh, Clark's lips crooked up lopsided "I decided it was best not to give it a try after that."

"No it was probably best not to, so then what happened."

Clark shrugged half-heartedly "He looked us both up and down, then gave a fake sigh and said; 'I _wronged_ you Clark, the first time you saved my life I sent you a car in appreciation, but I never even acknowledged your second and even more greater bravery on behalf. By sleazing onto Lana while I was married to her, you actually sacrificed yourself to ensure that I wouldn't be damned to a lifetime with a faithless slut, who is quite frankly is the most nauseating, not to mention tiresome person I've ever had the misfortune of knowing'. Then he strolled away laughing but stopped long enough to turn back and call out 'by the way, don't bother trying to off load her onto anyone else, I've already put the word out. There's not enough gold in Fort Knox to tempt even the most desperate into touching her with a cattle prod."

"Yikes."

"Yep, yikes is right." He nodded slowly and lifted his drink in salute.

"Well I hate to say it, but just as Joe had every right to condemn me…" She broke off and shrugged apologetically.

"I know; we both deserved everything he said." Clark smiled unhappily "What's really galling is that I did save him from still being married to Lana, only to lock myself into prison with her for 9 long years."

"What'd Lana say after he left?"

"She cried." His chin quivered when Lois began to cough "I know, she just stood there with tears streaming down her cheeks and cried; needless to say we did not go and see the play after that."

Lois gulped back a laugh and shook her head "Why would you; nothing you saw in the theatre could have topped Lex's performance."

He nodded in accord, and when Lois could hold it in no longer, she began to shriek with laughter. Giving up the battle to be stoic Clark joined in.

After their mirth died down, she cocked her head and asked "So why did the two of you stay married; it couldn't all have been because of ego."

"When it comes right down to it, that's what it was Lo. One part of me didn't want to give up, but the bigger part just didn't want to admit that I'd made such a colossal mistake. So I stayed with her and became even more miserable with every day that passed."

"Did Lana want out of the marriage too?"

"Yes and no; she wasn't happy but she was scared of being alone. However after I stopped indulging her and told her to shut up, suck it up and grow up, I think she was also looking for a way out. Lana wasn't surprised when I told her that I'd had enough. She was hurt that I wasn't willing to keep trying, hurt that we couldn't make it after all our nonsense years before, but she wasn't shocked." He shrugged apathetically "I had to get out because I had nothing left to give Lo; no more care, no more tolerance, not even obligation. She'd sucked me dry until I was barely a husk of my former self."

"You kept trying, so that counts for something." She commended sincerely.

"Yeah well, she was very trying." He replied dryly.

Lois grinned fast and bright "Good one."

"I wasn't the perfect husband Lo; despite everything I can't blame it all on Lana. She has her faults, but I'm sure that she'd say the same about me if asked." He admitted truthfully.

She looked at him and asked ruefully "We both fucked up, didn't we?"

"Yeah baby we did; but we've been given the chance to get it right this time and that's what counts." He put his glass down, took hers and set it beside his then captured her good hand in one of his "After everything I've said; are you ready to take the chance on marrying me"

"No, Clark I'm sorry; I don't know if I'll ever be ready. I do love you but I think I've used up all my second chances." She admitted quietly.

"You haven't Lo." He refuted just as softly.

"I need to be sure this time."

Instead of feeling deflated he nodded in agreement "I didn't expect one conversation to change your mind, and I don't feel that I've lost anything either." His lips crooked up in a half smile "You realised before you got married that you were making a mistake, so how long were you with Joe when that happened?"

"Almost 14 months."

"Ok, and the longest relationship you've had other than with him was for about a year, correct?" She nodded slowly "Well if you're not looking for a way to dump me in 27 months, which is just over two years away, by which time we'll have been together for three years, will you marry me?"

She gave a tiny smile in return "I don't know; will you ask me again in two years?"

"Yes." He replied without hesitation and leaning forward pressed his lips against hers.

She lifted her hand to sit on the side of his cheek, and deepened the kiss before pulling back "I cared about Joe, a part of me always will because he's the kind of man that inspires that emotion, but although I didn't love him, at one time I truly believed that I did." She leant forward and pressed her lips to his lightly "I love you Clark, and I wish that I could say that I know this is the kind of love that will last for a lifetime, but I've read the signs wrong in the past, and I don't think my heart will recover if I get it wrong again. However, I am willing to take a small leap of faith now." At the curiosity on his face, she took a deep breath and offered a compromise "What would you say to Fred and me moving to Metropolis?"

"Are you sure you wanna do that Lo? You've put down roots here, your friends, your work, your house; it's all here in Seattle." He asked, rubbing his hands lightly up and down her arms.

"Yeah, but if we stay here then you can't go outside on the weeknights without people questioning how you're in Seattle when you work in Metropolis. I can see my friends easily enough, and I can work anywhere. As for this house, well I may love it, but it's only bricks and mortar, I love you more." She summed up neatly.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure." She smiled and tilted her head "Besides, if I didn't move to Metropolis all your plans would go up in smoke."

"What plans?" He asked innocently.

"What plans he asks?" She snorted then elbowed him for good measure.

Clark grinned proudly "Ok so I had plans, shoot me."

"What's the point, the damn bullets would just bounce right off." She laughed in return.

He chuckled in appreciation and after sobering ran his fingers into her hair at the sides to obtain a clear unobstructed view of her face "I had plans, but what I'm going to say now, I mean it with all my heart Lois. I want you to marry me, but you don't want that, and marriage should be something both parties desire, otherwise they already have one strike against them. In a little over two years time I'll ask you again, but if you still aren't ready or just don't want to, it won't change a damn thing. I can never go back to just existing baby, that's not enough for me anymore; but together with you IS enough. As long as I have that, then I already have everything I need."

She smiled at him through her tears "You really think we'll last."

"I know we will, and one day you'll know that I'm right." He affirmed sedately "Knowing that you're willing to uproot your life and move to Metropolis, makes me feel like I've won the lottery Lo, and that's the truth."

She cuddled into his side, leant her head on his shoulder and looked up "The house that you've found..."

"It's going to be our house Lo, and if you don't like it then we'll just keep looking until we find a place that we're all happy with ok." He asked seriously.

"Ok, but I'd really prefer to buy a house rather than wasting money on rent."

"I can't afford to buy a house Lo."

"I can; I've been lucky Clark, my books have consistently sold well, so between the amount I get paid for the book itself, and the royalties that have been generated from sales and reprints both here and overseas I've managed to save quite a bit. I've also made a bit of money on investments which has added to the coffers, and if it's still not enough, well this house should fetch a good price on the market, so we shouldn't have any problems affording a new one."

"This is your house Lo."

"I think of it as our house, and the new one will have both our names on the title."

He shook his head "That's not fair Lois, you'll be paying for the house and I won't be bringing anything to the table."

"Bullshit." She replied swiftly before sitting up and smiling winningly "Money is essential to live, to pay bills etc, and yeah I have more than enough to live comfortably, but unless I have someone to share it with then what's the point. I can afford a house Clark, but without you it won't be a home. That's what you've made this place for both Fred and me, so as far as I'm concerned you're bringing a hell of a lot to the table."

He leant down and pressed his lips to her forehead "I have some money baby, just not enough for a house."

"Well if you like, I can make a hefty down payment and we can spend the next 20 years paying it off together, or we can look at this logically and decide that since the house is going to be both of ours, it shouldn't matter who pays for it."

"You're logic is very annoying."

"Since you've conned me on various occasions over the past 9 months with logical arguments, you now know just how I feel." She smiled unrepentant.

He grinned agreeably "I'll let you pay for it on one condition only..." Her eyes narrowed at the glee in his "If you do decide to dump me one day then you can keep the house...." When her mouth opened, he continued smoothly without giving her time to interrupt "I'll just take Fred."

"You're not getting my dog!" She hissed menacingly.

"Then you'd better not try to get rid of me." He almost sang back.

Her mouth snapped shut before she began to giggle "You are the most underhanded, conniving, sneaky person that I've ever met."

He hooted in laughter "Well if that's not the pot calling the kettle black."

"Yeah, and who should know better than the pot." Lois retorted swiftly.

"And that's exactly why we're perfect for each other." Clark returned just as promptly.

They grinned before leaning forward to seal their lips. Pulling back after a moment, he nodded at the box on the table "Maybe it's time to get rid of that picture babe, and only keep one's of us."

She nodded softly in agreement "It is."


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

_Next day_

Lois looked over the grounds of the backyard with pleasure "You said the owners were interested in selling the house."

"Yeah, but as it's been on the market for awhile now, and they haven't had any respectable offers, they were happy to rent it out so that it wasn't left vacant." Clark smiled at seeing Fred gambolling and frolicking on the lawn "Apparently the owners aren't hurting for money, so when the realtor contacted them on my behalf, and told them that I wanted to rent with the option of buying in the future depending on whether you like it, they said yes."

Lois nodded, turned to view the house, turned in a circle to view the grounds and thought that her boyfriend had found one hell of a house "Ok, well first we need to give it a good look-see. I figure that given the size of the yard that we're relatively safe, but can you fly up as Superman and take a quick squiz to make sure that no one can see us down here, or you while you're up there."

Clark nodded, checked around carefully and quickly spun into the suit before lifting up. After looking around with x-ray and tuning his hearing in all directions he floated back down "We're good babe; there are houses either side and in back, but no one can see us down here. More than likely they will see me if I'm on the roof, but at the moment everyone is either asleep, or not at home."

"Then it's a good thing we're here so early on a Sunday morning...." Lois smiled cheerfully and pointed upwards "...because the first thing I want you to do is fly up there and check out the guttering, and then make sure the roof is even and straight. The last thing we need is a sagging or uneven roof line which could be a major worry. Also check out the roof tiles, make sure they're not broken or displaced, and while you're up there check out the timber cladding for rot, while I look around down here."

"Be careful of your arm Lo." He cautioned and zipped up to inspect everything Lois had told him to, then also did a sweep with his x-ray vision under the roof, the tiles, the timber and through the walls to ensure there was no termite activity, or hidden rot that couldn't be detected with the naked eye. Coming back down, he spun out of the suit, looked at the ground and x-rayed around before joining his girlfriend as she continued to inspect the windows and the base of the house.

"Well it looks like the owners have kept this place in good condition; how'd you go?" Lois grasped onto Clark's proffered hand and stood.

"The same, I checked everything you mentioned, plus I also x-rayed to ensure there was no rotting underneath that couldn't be seen. Oh, and as there are quite a few trees, I also thought it couldn't hurt to look under the ground to ensure the roots either aren't now, or weren't going to get into the pipes, which as you know can also cause major problems."

"Good thinking." She smiled in approval.

Keeping her hand clasped in his, Clark steered them to the path, walked towards the house, and climbed the stairs coming to a stop on the porch.

"What time is the realtor coming to take us through?"

He took a quick look at his watch "She won't be here for another hour babe. As you know I dropped in and saw her late yesterday afternoon, and told her that if you liked the house, we wanted to buy it instead of renting. However, as I didn't want her to see Superman flying his girlfriend and her dog in, I asked her if we could look around privately first, and she said yes." He dug into his pocket, pulled out the keys and jiggled them happily "She also gave me these."

Lois smiled slowly "Very clever and sneaky."

He grinned unashamed, stepped forward to unlock the door, then stepped aside for her to enter. Turning he whistled to Fred and followed the mutt into the house.

Lois opened the backpack she'd brought, dug out her pad and pen, handed the spirit level, torch and screwdriver to Clark and began her inspection. They moved from room to room looking around carefully, taking in everything before climbing the stairs to the second floor, and once again stepped into each room to look them over fastidiously. Their footsteps echoed loudly as they moved through the house. Everything was inspected and checked; taps and showers were turned on, toilets flushed, windows and doors opened and closed, lights switched on and off, closets inspected for space, walls and floor tiles were tapped, floors checked to ensure they were level, ceilings examined for bulges, hands held in front of vents checking for good air flow. Clark trailed behind Lois enjoying the intense concentration on her face, examining anything that she wanted him to, and almost laughed out loud when she called out "Remind me to jump up and down on the front veranda later ok?"

"Sure baby." His smile grew wider when she stepped into the master bedroom and came to a full stop. He knew this room would capture her, if nothing else did, this one would.

At the sight of the stained and leaded art glass double doors at the head of the room, Lois smiled in delight. Stepping over quickly, she unlocked the doors, pushed them open, and felt her smile hitch up before stepping outside onto the small balcony to look over the back yard.

Stepping through the door, and slipping one arm around her waist Clark looked over the yard then turned to her "What'd you think?"

"I think this is the most beautiful house you could have found." She pressed her head against his chest and leant back for a moment before swinging around "I can't believe you were only intending to live here every weekend; correction on the weekend of every third month."

When she began to shiver slightly from the cold, he urged her back into the room and shut the doors "Yeah, but it would have been perfect for our needs Lo. You could have pottered away to your heart's content in the garden, and Fred would have enjoyed all that open space, so even for a few days every now and again it would have been perfect."

"But it seems such a shame that it was only going to be used rarely, and left vacant for most of the time."

"It was only going to be until I could coax you into moving here permanently." He reminded her candidly, and grinned at her answering gurgle. Reaching up, he rubbed lightly at the smudges of dust on her forehead and cheeks before pressing a kiss to her hair "No matter how beautiful this house is Lo, as you pointed out yesterday, it's only bricks and mortar. It's you and Fred that will make it a home, and I'm not interested in living anywhere unless you're there too." He told her sincerely.

"You're only partially right; no matter where the three of us live, together we'll all make it home." She corrected firmly.

"Yeah" He agreed in a voice full of satisfaction "So what'd you think, should we make an offer or do you wanna look around some more?"

"I think we should make an offer."

He slipped his arms around her waist, picked her up to bring her face level with his and smiled into her eyes "Really."

"Really and truly; you've found possibly the only house that I'll be happy to leave our other one for." She grinned happily.

Leaning forward to capture her lips in a soft kiss, he lifted his head a moment later and grinned "Do you wanna jump and down on the porch first before deciding for sure?"

"I'll still do that, but if there's a problem with it, we'll just negotiate to have the repairs taken off the sale price." She returned readily and opened her mouth to make another remark, but ended by frowning "Where's Fred?"

Clark's brow wrinkled, and after setting her down the two stepped out of the room, and found the dog with his nose down sniffing the floor of the room next door. When he sneezed at a dustball, then proceeded to once again trod around sniffing and scrutinising before planting his tail on the ground beside them and barking, they smiled in return.

"I think he's found the room that he wants." Clark replied dryly.

Lois shook her head "Freddy, this is not supposed to be your room; you're a dog so you don't get a bedroom."

"Don't tell him that Lo." Clark admonished in mock anger.

"What, that he doesn't get his own bedroom?"

"No, that he's a dog." He replied reaching over to pat the mutt "There are three bedrooms other than the master, so he can have his own room."

"Forget it; he sleeps in his doggy bed in the laundry." She returned swiftly.

"The laundry's downstairs." He reminded her pointedly.

"He'll survive." She replied deadpan.

"I thought women were supposed to be soft hearted creatures?" He grumbled and continued stroking the dog's head while looking at her reproachfully.

"We have to be the practical one's because men don't have the guts to be the bad guys." She smiled undaunted.

Clark huffed and looked down at the animal "It's ok Fred, when it storms you can still crawl into our room, and she won't kick you out then."

"Storms are different." Lois conceded graciously.

"If you had any womanly compassion you wouldn't shunt him away downstairs, making him feel abandoned." Clark admonished gently.

"If you feel that strongly about it...." She sighed heavily and when he looked at her hopefully, she finished placidly "Then maybe you can sleep in the laundry with him."

He looked down at the mutt, and shrugged apologetically before stepping over to slip his arms around her waist "How about a compromise, he can sleep up here in a corner somewhere."

She rolled her eyes "He's not sleeping in any corners, but how about we put his doggy bed at the end of the hallway up here so that he's close to us, will that be alright?"

He grinned and nodded "Yep, and since I'm not going to bamboozle you anymore, I might as well confess that I'd already discussed that idea with Fred on the flight over here."

Not giving her time to respond, he captured her lips with his, and when her mouth opened at his urging, his tongue slipped inside to stroke and joust softly with hers. Lips moulded, and firmed as the kiss became harder, deeper; mouths lifted briefly, changed angles and came back together again.

At the cough from the doorway, they broke apart, turned around and smiled sheepishly at the realtor.

The lady waved her hand "I'm sorry for interrupting. I promise that I wouldn't have it wasn't necessary, but you didn't hear my call downstairs, so I came up here. When I saw you both, I walked away for a minute but when I came back, I realised that I had to interrupt or I might not get back to the office anytime soon."

Lois flushed and giggled "Sorry."

"Oh honey don't be; if I had a man kissing me like that, I wouldn't be paying any attention to what was happening around me either." She stepped forward, and shook Clark's hand then turned as he began introductions.

"Lo this is Sherry Doyle; Sherry my girlfriend Lois Lane." Sherry shook the outstretched hand, then pointed to the arm in the cast "Broken arm?"

"Wrist; I had a car accident a few weeks ago." She smiled liking the woman immediately.

"So what's a bigger pain; dealing with the insurance company to get the car fixed, dealing with the insurance company regarding your medical bills, or trying to have a shower with only one good arm?" Sherry asked with smile.

Lois groaned and shook her head "Don't even get me started."

"Well it's the left arm that's out of commission, so that's good news."

"Not so good since I'm left handed." Lois returned with a slight eye roll.

Sherry grinned in appreciation, then cocked her head at the mountain of fur who was huffing at being ignored "So this is must be Fred, and I can see why you need a fairly comfortable place to house him in." She reached out her hand then pulled it back before looking at them "Will he let me pat him?"

Clark nodded "He's fine if he knows you, or if we're around so go ahead."

She reached out, stroked his head then giggled when he snuffled into her hand "Comely little fellow isn't he?"

"Comely yes; little no." Lois corrected with a smile.

After a last pat of the dog's head, Sherry gave them her full attention "Ok, so would you like me to walk you through the house? I know we've already done that Clark, but I'm happy to do so again and give you a full run down Lois."

She shook her head in reply "I've already had a good look around and I like what I see, but as I'm not qualified I'd like to get a professional building and pest inspection done, also an appraisal of the property. If all that works out, then we just need to work out the price. Can you tell me what the owners are asking?"

Sherry nodded, opened her folder and after a quick verification, gave them the asking price.

"Ok, well we can discuss the price later, but first we'll organise the inspections and see what they say. If work needs to be done, then either the owners have to get it done without charging us for it, or the amount it will cost to repair has to come off the price we agree on for the house." Lois replied forthrightly.

"That seems fair enough but I don't think you'll find any problems." The realtor took a spec sheet out of the folder and handed it to Clark "The owners had some work done less than three years ago so ...."

Lois looked at the sheet in his hand and nodded before looking at the realtor once again "Why would they get all this work done only to sell the house so soon afterwards?"

"Work, the husband was offered a position that was too good to refuse in LA, so the family moved, and the house is for sale."

"Ok, well Clark and I will get the ball rolling and ask the inspectors to contact you when they need to look around, is that ok?"

"That's fine." She nodded agreeably.

Walking out of the house, the three people and dog stood on the porch talking for a few more minutes before turning to part ways. Stopping half way to her car, the realtor turned back "Um, I don't see a vehicle, would you like me to drop you off somewhere?"

"Thanks Sherry, but we're going to stroll around the riverfront market for a while." When she looked doubtfully at the mutt, Clark laughed "He's ok, a friend of ours only lives a few blocks away and has offered to babysit for a couple of hours."

"Ok, well I look forward to hearing from you; or the inspectors soon." With a wave, she got in the car, tooted the horn and drove off.

"Do you want me to drop you at the markets before I take Fred home Lo?"

"Nah, I'll just wait here until you get back; but can you take my bag and dump it at home. Only bring back my wallet, no on second thought, bring the bag as well, because we might find stuff at the markets that we want." He nodded, slung the backpack over his arms, picked up the dog and floated upwards. His laughter rang out when he looked down to find his girlfriend jumping up and down on the porch like a mad woman.

Lois looked up, shaded her eyes and waved airily then continued bouncing around on the floorboards until satisfied, after which she made herself comfortable on the top step waiting for her taxi to return.

***

_Later that night_

Clark stepped out of the shower behind Lois, unwrapped the plastic bag encasing the cast and grabbed a towel from the rack. When she held out her hand, he just smiled and proceeded to wipe her down carefully, before wrapping her in it, then grabbed a second towel to swipe over himself. Once dry, he tossed it negligently into the laundry basket, scooped her up in his arms and strode back into the bedroom.

Placing her on the stool in front of the dresser, he stood behind rifling his fingers through the damp strands of her hair, as his heat vision waved back and forth until her hair was dry. When Lois picked up the brush, he gently took it from her hand, placed it back down, and proceeded to finger comb her hair, before running fingertips and palms over her scalp caressing and massaging gently. Picking up the brush again, he ran it through the tresses until it lay like a gleaming soft curtain falling just past her shoulders and framing her face.

Tilting her head backwards, he bent down and pecked her lips with his before waving his hand at the assortment of creams, and lotions on the dressing table "Which one do you use after your shower babe?"

Her lips lifted in a half smile, and pointing to the appropriate bottle she wasn't surprised when he scooped it up, turned her around and poured a generous amount in his palm. Squatting down in front, he began to smooth the lotion over her body starting at her feet and working upwards.

"Are you trying to seduce me?"

"Yes." He replied honestly then shrugged "But I also know that you're somewhat limited with your cast, so this is me also being helpful."

"Thank you." Leaning forward, she pressed a kiss to the top of his head then giggled when he lifted his face and puckered up his lips.

Once finished he stood up, and zipped to the bed to pull back the covers then returned to scoop her up into his arms again. Taking a seat on the side, he cradled her in his lap and rubbed one hand over the small of her back "How sleepy are you?"

"Terribly." Lois fake yawned, but at his pout, she gave into the smile trembling on her lips "I'm not sleepy at all; and yes I want to."

Smiling, he tugged off her towel and tossed it aside, before lying down with her at his side. Leaning forward, he touched his lips to one edge of Lois' mouth then the other, but at the anticipation on her face, he shook his head slowly in rebuttal "Nu uh, we're not going to rush; it's been three weeks since we last made love, and I intend to savour every last bit of it."

"There were a couple of times when your mom wasn't at home when we could have, but you wanted to wait." She murmured reproachfully.

"Mmm hmm, I wanted to ensure that you were completely healed." He lifted the arm encased in the cast, and drifted his lips upwards until he reached her shoulder "This is the only thing that still shows." He laid her arm back down, cupped her face in his hands and captured her eyes with his "Are you sure that you're not still even a little bit sore Lo?"

"I'm sure."

"What about your ribs?"

"They're fine."

He nodded minutely ran his fingertips gently over the area where the cut had been high on her arm, and saw the red scar that was the only reminder it had ever been there "What about this?"

"It's a little tender but that's all; so unless you intend to give it a good thump it, I'll be alright." She laughed quietly.

He pressed his lips to the scar, before tailing them up the side of her neck, to her ear "I don't intend to do that." He whispered and not giving her time to answer pressed his lips against hers fleetingly, pressed again for a little longer, then a little bit longer again before sealing their lips together.

His arms wrapped around her waist, her good arm slid around to run her finger tips up and down his spine, causing his muscles to ripple and bunch in pleasure at her touch. His arms tightened fractionally, as lips lifted but never quite parted to change angles before fastening together once again. Tongues duelled slowly, into her mouth, then his and back again, as the kiss went on and on.

Shifting slightly to the side, Clark loosened one arm from around her waist, to smooth his hand up until his palm sat comfortably underneath one breast. His fingers contracted and released around the globe, while his thumb rubbed over and around the bud. When it swelled and hardened he murmured approvingly into her mouth, she purred in return as his thumb continued to stroke over it gently.

When lips parted reluctantly to allow both to breathe deeply, his mouth glided down the column of her throat to her upper chest and down, coming to stop at her breasts. His tongue swabbed over the hardened bud, his thumb stroked over it again, his tongue gave it another gentle wash, his thumb brushed it once more, then his mouth enclosed around the tip and surrounding flesh to suckle softly. Slipping his other arm from under her back, his hand trailed up to the free breast, smoothed over the globe and squeezed gently, before trailing down her torso to her mound to rifle his fingers lazily through the soft curls, before trailing back up to the breast once again. His mouth stayed busy as his hand continued to waltz up and down her body leisurely, leaving a growing fire in its wake.

It had only been three weeks since they last made love, but his hand, his mouth on her body made the past 21 days feel like an eternity since she'd last felt his touch. Her skin felt stretched, too tight, sensitised. His complete concentration on her was ambrosial, and his murmurs of appreciation made her feel like a total sensualist.

His hand finally came to a stop sitting quietly on her mound, her legs opened wider and his palm slid down to compress her sex lightly, as his mouth trailed to her other breast. While his lips and tongue paid homage to one part of her body, his fingers did likewise to another.

He grunted softly in approval at finding wet soft flesh, his fingertips stroked lightly through the folds and crevices softly caressing the heart while his thumb rubbed over the top of her sex. The button hard nubbin filled with blood and swelled with excitement at his ministrations, as the moisture seeped out coating his fingers.

With a last sip his lips released the nipple, and lifting his head, Clark looked at Lois' face and felt his heart turn over. God he loved this woman. He loved seeing her like this; her neck and breasts flushed pink with arousal, her eyes closed, lower lip caught in her teeth, and her face sharp with desire. His heart thumped hard and bloomed with certainty. She was his, and unlike the others who'd came before; he was never letting her go.

Bending down he pressed his lips against hers, slipped his tongue inside when her mouth opened and sealing their lips together, caught her light gasp when he pushed one finger into her opening and began to move it lazily in and out. Her hips began to lift and fall in time with the movement of his finger, a second digit slipped inside to join the first, stroking and stretching her inner tissues softly, while his thumb rubbed over the slippery flesh on the outside.

Lois wrenched her mouth free, and pushed her head down into the pillow, Clark pressed his lips fleetingly against hers, before lifting his head to lock his eyes onto his beloved's face. His fingers moved faster, pushed in deeper, and seeing the desperation for completion on her face, he began to vibrate his fingers, causing her mouth to open in a small o of delighted surprise, before she finally fell over the edge with a breathless pant.

Not giving her time to rest, his lips moved in the valley of her breasts, down her torso, over her tummy; his hands tenderly parted her legs further, and his mouth moved down. Using two fingers, he held her carefully open, and glided his tongue from the top to the bottom of her sex, once then again, the fingers of his free hand rubbed over the moist flesh caressingly before his tongue washed gently over the whole area, skating and stroking, flicking and licking here and there. When her hips began to twitch, he grasped onto her thighs to still her movements, as his tongue bathed the hard nubbin at the top with only the lightest of touches, before slowly sweeping over the core gently and repeatedly, making Lois rumble softly of approval.

While she was coming down from her second less intense journey, Clark moved to lie in the cradle of her thighs, lifted up on his forearms, and pressed forward until his penis was embedded deeply within her channel. Withdrawing slowly, he pushed back inside and began to advance and retreat in a languid dance.

Lois' legs rose up, clasped his hips, her feet caressed the back of his thighs, the fingertips of her casted arm pressed into his back, while the other hand slid down to his bottom to clench her fingers in softly. At his soft hum of pleasure, her lips curved, lashes fluttered up to find his eyes open and on hers. Cupping her face in his hands, their eyes held steady as he continued to move slowly but with ever more deliberation, stroking deeper in and out of her passage; while his chest rasped gently against the stiffened tips of her breasts with every advance and retreat. The intimacy of watching each other, and the exquisite feeling of pleasure, caused their eyes to darken further. Simultaneously, her head lifted, his bent, mouths sealed together, and tongues wove caressingly in tempo until they fell over the edge quietly.

Sitting up on his haunches after, he slipped his arms under her back and lifted her up, wrapping his arms tight around her waist. Her arms hooked over his shoulders in return "Oops sorry."

"For what"

"I just knocked your head with my cast."

"Baby I didn't even feel it." He replied, pressing his lips to her shoulder. Holding her securely with one arm, he tilted up her chin up with his free hand, and stroked his thumb along her jaw line "How many times have we made love Lo?"

"I don't know." She murmured quietly, enjoying the feeling of closeness having him inside her brought, even now when the act was over.

"I can't get enough of you Lois." Pressing a kiss into the hollow of her throat, he lifted his head and locked his eyes onto hers "It doesn't ever seem to be enough."

"Well you certainly try to make it enough." She smiled slightly.

He shook his head lightly "No, no matter how often, no matter how many times, it won't ever be enough." He lifted one hand and swept the hair over her shoulder "When I'm 90 and you're 91, we'll still be making love, and it still won't be enough."

"I doubt we'll still be doing it then." She teased gently.

"Yes we will." He corrected steadily "And it will still be as incredible then as it is now." Keeping his eyes on hers, the hand on jaw slipped around to sit in the middle of her shoulder blades, as his other hand smoothed down her spine to her bottom, glided onto the thigh wrapped around his waist, before lazily making the return journey until it was once again sitting quietly on her back. His other hand then followed the same pattern and likewise swept over her body down the opposite side and back up again "And I'll still love touching you, feeling your skin against mine then as much as I do now." Slipping his hands down he cupped her bottom and swirled his hips gently, stimulating the soft inner flesh of her sex with his penis; enjoying both her light gasp, and the feeling of her liquid warmth embracing his shaft "And I'll still love being inside you, having you wrapped around me both while we make love and afterwards then as much as I do now." Not giving her a chance to speak, he swooped and captured her mouth with his, slipping his tongue inside to glide along hers, enticing and inviting.

Lifting her off him carefully, he lay down with her settled full length on him, as their mouths continued to cling. Tangling the fingers of one hand in her hair, he moved her head to accommodate him, as their tongues and lips continued to caress, and duel lazily with each others. The kiss was soft then hard, changed angles, once, twice. Letting go of her hair, he cupped her face in his hands, lifted his head to press his lips gently against hers a few more times before slipping his arms around her waist, and turning slightly until their bodies lay side by side, with her head resting on the pillow beside his.

His eyes opened to lock onto hers solemnly.

"That was one heck of a kiss." Lois said quietly, lifting her hand to his cheek.

Clark nodded minutely "And that's exactly how we'll still be kissing when I'm 89 and you're 90, or I'm 90 and you're 91." He brushed the hair away from her face and ran this thumb lightly over her bottom lip "I wish we hadn't lost so many years."

She shrugged indifferently "They're gone, so wasting your wishes on them is pointless.

He leant forward to kiss her deeply before lifting his mouth from hers, and smiling in contemplation "They're gone but we still have our whole lives ahead, and I don't know what I'm looking forward to more. Enjoying our journey together, or sitting in our rocking chairs when we're old and grey, reminiscing about our life before I carry you off to bed to make love."

She giggled softly in return "I don't mind being old and grey, but do I at least have my teeth in your little scenario?"

He chuffed out a laugh "Yep, you'll also have wrinkles but I'll love them too." He reached down to capture her hand, inter-linking his fingers with those in her cast.

"Baby."

"Hmm."

"Do you want children?"

"I don't know." She answered truthfully, before turning the question to him "Do you?"

"I don't know if I can have them." He told her honestly.

She sighed and squeezed his fingers "Well we're quite a pair aren't we?"

"I guess I just assumed that all women wanted children."

"You assumed wrong." She smiled gently "Not all women want children, anymore than all men want them. Some women; myself included don't know if they do or not, others know definitively they don't, while still others feel incomplete without them. In truth having children isn't something that I've ever thought about, neither have I ever felt the fabled biological clock ticking syndrome."

"Really?"

"Really."

"But if we do decide to have children, and then find out that we can't...." He trailed off when her fingers pressed against his lips.

"If we can't then it won't necessarily be because of you. It could be me, it could be our different physiology that makes it impossible, but let's take a leaf out of your book, and say that we will be together for the rest of our lives..." He interrupted to press a quick smiling kiss to her lips. She grinned and continued "If we have children I'll be happy, if we don't I'll be happy. But if we do, then one day they'll leave to make a life of their own anyway which is just as it should be. So at the end of the day whether we have them or not, it will still come back to us; just you and me together, as we first started."

He swallowed the lump in his throat, hugged her tight and pressed his face into her hair "You and me; I love the sound of that."

"That's because you're a big sap." She chuckled lightly.

He kissed her neck and leant back to grin "Yeah, but there is one thing I insist on Lo."

At the twinkle in his eyes, she cocked her brow and waited patiently.

"We may or may not have children, but we should make sure that we get in plenty of practice in the baby making process. We need to guarantee that we're doing it right, otherwise if we do decide to have them, our chances are slim to none of achieving success if we're doing it wrong from the very beginning and don't even realise it." He informed her seriously.

She guffawed in return "That's your argument for us to have plenty of sex?"

"We already have plenty, but it's not enough. I think a wealth of experience would increase our chances enormously." He replied while his eyes continued to twinkle, and his chin quivered.

She held back the chuckle and heaved out a long drawn out put upon sigh "Fiiiine; if we _**have**_ to then I guess I'll just have to endure the hardship."

"I love the way you endure." He smirked readily.

"I love your hardship." She smirked in return.

Unable to hold it in any longer, they chortled out loud, before their mirth calmed and they lay looking at each other.

Clark smiled softly at his love. She was scared of trusting her heart, and getting it wrong once again, but somewhere deep inside she knew their relationship was right. She was willing to uproot her whole life and move to Metropolis, she could talk about them having children, growing old together, and even suggest taking 20 years to pay off a house if he didn't want her to pay for it. She knew this time it was real; she just wasn't ready to trust herself, but one day she would believe just as he did.

Lois' lips lifted at the smile in his eyes, she hoped that this time she had gotten it right, that this man was the one she would grow old with. She could see them in their rocking chairs reminiscing about the olden days. Her comfortably plump, Clark drifting off to sleep, then waking up and insisting that all he'd been doing was resting his eyes, before continuing to reminisce about when they young. That was a long way down the road but she could see it, and hoped that one day it would come true.


	30. Chapter 30

Hi everyone

Here is the next part, I hope you like it.

Linda

***

**Chapter 30**

_Almost Three Months Later_

Boxes, suitcases, and furniture was everywhere. Lois stepped from the lounge room, into the kitchen and saw more boxes; some half unpacked, some still taped down and shook her head. Stepping back out, she made her way up the stairs, peered into a couple of rooms, headed straight for the master bedroom and once again saw more boxes. Flopping down on the unmade but very welcome bed, she looked up at the ceiling and groaned.

What in hell was she thinking? Only a masochist would do this to themselves deliberately. They'd been unpacking all morning, it was nearly lunchtime and the number of boxes lying around didn't seem to have lessened at all. They had her stuff, his stuff and their stuff. They had more stuff than any

two people should have. Maybe they could just dump it all into a room, close the door and walk away.

***

Finally giving into Fred's whining, Clark searched for and found the dog's rubber rope string. Stepping outside with the beast hard on his heels, he made his way to the back garden and the largest tree. After affixing it, he stepped back and watched as Fred began to pull and tug on his toy. The mutt had at first enjoyed sticking his nose into every opened box, gambolling around the house, sniffing everywhere and making himself at home, not to mention a nuisance of himself, but had finally tired of their non-attention and instead made his demand for his toy well known.

Seeing the way that Fred was wrestling with the thing, Clark figured they'd better buy another one or two and keep them in reserve. The dog loved this toy and if it broke and there wasn't another readily available he'd no doubt sulk. With their luck the supply would run out just when they needed it, and then they'd have to wait for more to come in stock. The last time that happened with his favourite liver baked treats, the animal had been in such a huff, he and Lois had sworn they'd never run out again.

Giving the beast a pat, Clark made his way back to the house and stepped inside the kitchen. After a quick squiz around the room, he pushed open the swing door to the lounge and swept his eyes over the disorganised chaos. Furniture, boxes, cushions, books and all sorts of odds and ends were everywhere; but no girlfriend. Using x-ray vision, he looked through the front and side balcony doors to check the veranda's and yards, but still coming up empty decided it was time to go on the hunt.

After looking into every room on the lower floor, he climbed the stairs, peered into one room, then the next before coming to a stop on the threshold to their bedroom.

There she was, and she just happened to be exactly where he'd been hoping to coax her. Grinning, he kicked off his shoes, and crawled onto the bed beside his love "Having a rest?"

"I was thinking that we could just throw everything out and buy it all new." Lois replied, opening her eyes to stare vacantly at the ceiling.

"Why?"

"Because I can't be bothered unpacking anymore."

His lips twitched at the tone in her voice; Lois and whining just did not go hand in hand "I think it's fun."

She rolled her eyes in his direction but didn't deign to comment.

"Just think, tonight's the first night that we're going to sleep in our new home." He turned on his side and slipped his arm over her waist cuddling her against him.

"Yeah and sleeping is all we're going to do, since I'm probably going to be too exhausted to do anything else." She tapped her fingers on his arm thoughtfully "What time are you picking your mom up?"

"I told her that I'd pick her up just before dinner, which is about the time that Chloe will be arriving." His hand slid up her torso, his fingers edged just under the opening of her halter top to stroke gently along the top of her breasts.

In return she shook her head "Forget it, we'll have company tonight, and right now...."

"Right now Fred's playing with his toy..." He interrupted softly, latching onto her earlobe to gently suck before blowing softly. Feeling the small shiver travel through her body, he grinned wickedly "The guest bedrooms are on the opposite side of the house so mom and Chloe shouldn't hear us tonight..." When her mouth opened, he held up a hand and gave her a solemn look "I promise to do all the work while you just lie there..."

Lois opened her mouth, closed it then wiggled her brows "Actually that sounds pretty good."

"I thought you'd like that idea, but for now...." He trailed off meaningfully.

"For now what?" She asked huskily.

"For now, how about we take a break from unpacking, and christen our new bedroom." He murmured softly.

She huffed out a laugh and turning on her side, hooked her leg over his "Why aren't you using super-something to put all our crap away?"

"After we decide where the furniture is going to be placed I will, but as for putting everything away, nuh huh. I know very well if I do that, more than likely you'll say that I put it all in the wrong place." His lips nuzzled from her ear to her cheek before capturing her lips in a long deep kiss. Lifting his head a moment later, he smiled and brushed back the hair from her face "Even all mussy and messy you look beautiful." He bent and pressed his lips to the tip of her nose as his hand swept gently up and down her side, and sending her a sweet smile he whispered "C'mon baby, let's get it on."

Lois let out a shout of laughter "How can I resist such a romantic offer?"

"You can't, and I've got plenty more romantic things to say which will charm the pants right off you." He smiled devilishly.

Sniggering she slipped her hands under his t-shirt to stroke his back "And since getting my pants off is your objective, I guess that I might as well just give in right now." Leaning forward she captured his lips with hers before he could respond.

His hand slid around and up to the middle of her back, tugged open the bow of the halter top, slid higher to undo the ties at the back of her neck, and once free the material was tossed aside as his mouth lifted from hers to latch onto her breast. Sighing in delight, his lips, teeth and tongue tormented the bud, while one hand cupped the other breast, compressing, and releasing around the globe; plucking at the nipple lightly with his fingertips.

Lois squirmed in his embrace, as her hands ran over his back and through his hair. Reaching down she tugged his t-shirt up, he freed her momentarily to pull his shirt of impatiently before sliding down and sealing their lips together once again. Mouths opened, tongues stroked, plundered, and jousted gently. His hand lifted to once again clasp and compress one breast, while his other hand moved down to cup and rub her centre through the low slung jeans she was wearing.

Rolling over the bed and back again, their bodies skimmed and glided over each others, hands stroked and caressed, mouths met and parted, roved over each other as the fever grew higher in each. Soft touches became harder and more deliberate, as the desire for skin on skin contact became even more desperate.

Latching onto her breast once again, he raked his teeth over the nipple before enclosing the bud and surrounding flesh within the warm cavern of his mouth, sucking lightly then stronger at Lois' urging. The hand between her legs slid up, unzipped the jeans and freeing her breast he stood, pulled both the jeans and panties off in one swoop, and grasping her legs, he tugged her to the edge of the bed before sliding to his knees and pressing his mouth against her sex. His tongue swabbed over the whole area, sliding over and between the folds and crevices, then his fingertips rubbed over the soft wet flesh caressingly. Easing one finger inside, he moved it in and out deliberately slow, before moving his mouth back to her centre to lick and flick at the blood red nubbin, then down over the heart of her entrance again. The sounds of pleasure coming from his beloved, her foot rubbing his shoulder and back was all the encouragement he needed to take her higher, and pressing his mouth hard against her sex, he sipped and sucked, murmuring softly in approval when the moisture issued forth coating his tongue.

Reaching out to find purchase in something, Lois' hand grasped a small pillow. Shoving it under her head, she began to let go only to clench her fingers deep into the cushion as Clark's mouth continued to work over the flesh between her thighs. Digging her toes into the mattress, she arched up when his tongue laved over the flesh before his fingertips once again rubbed; his mouth and fingers keeping her at fever pitch.

Her panting gasps, the tell tale signs in her body signifying that she was close was enough for him to change tactics again. Hooking his arms under her thighs to keep her spread open and still, he outspread the fingers of one hand raking and tugging gently through the soft wet curls of her mound, massaging gently, while the fingers of his other hand held back the hood giving his tongue unobstructed access to the blood red bud of her clitoris. Grasping the nub gently with his teeth, he swept his tongue over it once, then again before flicking at it lightly and repeatedly.

God, he was driving her out of her mind; letting go of the cushion, she clamped her finger into his hair, tugging on his scalp, dragging his mouth closer, even as her body began to writhe against him in earnest. Pressing down on his forearms to hold her hips still, Clark continued to flick at the exposed jangled bundle of nerves of her clitoris, and with a high pitched wail, Lois' body arched up high, before falling back to the bed, trembling helplessly.

Ripping off his jeans and briefs, Clark slid onto the bed, and clamped his mouth to hers. Feeling his knee pressing between her legs, Lois wrenched her mouth free, pushed against his shoulders and when he tumbled down, she smiled wickedly "Now it's my turn."

He grinned when her hand snaked down to grasp his penis, gently sliding up and down while her fingertips caressed all along his shaft. He groaned when her hand slipped underneath to cup and fondle him, his moans became louder when she took him into her mouth. His knees rose up when she began to torment him with a combination of long glides, and short flicks of her tongue. But when she deliberately leant up and rubbed her breasts just above his groin, he squirmed and thought he'd go mad if he couldn't be inside her soon. Unable to take anymore, he reached down, tugged until her body slide all along the length of his and clamped their mouths together.

When their lips parted, Lois rose up, straddled his thighs and sank down onto him, sighing in pleasure at the feeling of her inner walls stretching to accommodate him, then the utter bliss of fullness having him inside her felt. Almost buzzing with delight, she placed her hands on his chest for balance, and began to rock lazily. His glazed eyes opened to watch his love, and he wondered if it was tempting fate to be this happy.

Sliding one hand from her hip he sat it low on the wet curls of her mound, delighting in sensation of sinking deep inside her passage, feeling her muscles and tissues parting to allow him entrance, embracing and closing around him then caressing all along his penis every time she lifted up before lowering herself onto him again. Lifting his eyes to her face, he panted out softly "I love you sweetheart."

Lois smiled and opened darkened drowsy eyes to smile lazily into his "I can tell."

He smiled back, and sitting up wrapped his arms tight around her waist, hers locked around his shoulders, and they continued to rock gently as mouths caught. Their arms tightened, and when lips separated, she moved her mouth to his ear "I love you."

Smoothing his hands down her back, he pressed his lips to the side of her neck breathing in her scent before lowering back down, and taking her with him, rolled until he was on top. Her legs rose up to lock high around his hips pulling his penis deeper within, almost making his eyes roll to the back of his head "Hell baby." At his words, her lips curved, her hand cupped his jaw and lifting her head she captured his mouth with hers once again. Tongues dances, mouths slanted as lips caressed and firmed, clinging together as their bodies continued to dance.

Cuddling her into his chest afterward, Clark rubbed his chin over her hair and teased lightly "I thought you were tired."

Lois heard the laughter in his voice, pinched his side and lifted her eyes to his "I said that I would be tonight."

"So you did." He murmured, and tangling one hand in her hair brought her mouth to his for a quick kiss. Stretching in satisfied lassitude, he patted her hip and smiled "Now that's what I call christening our bedroom; and if that's the way you give in, then I'm really looking forward to seeing what you're like when actively co-operating."

She snorted lightly "I don't know what in the world you're talking about; I'm a good girl thank you very much."

"Very good." He concurred with a huge grin, making her chortle softly "Now how about I have a quick shower then go and buy us some lunch while you have a shower, and after we eat, we can get back into it?"

"Get back into what exactly?" She asked politely as her eyes shined with mirth.

"Get your mind out of the gutter woman, I was talking about unpacking."

"Shame." Lifting her head, Lois looked around the room again, saw the boxes, clothes and articles strewn around and groaned "Why did I put myself through this?"

"Cause you love me." He smiled jauntily.

"Cause I'm crazy." She countered in the same vein but at his pout, leant forward and nipped at his lip "Did I tell you how happy Carly was to attain Eva's services?" He shook his head "Well she gets my housekeeper, so she's over the moon. Eva didn't have to worry about being unemployed or worse being employed by someone awful, so it works out for her as well, and I'm the only one who loses out by losing my gem of a housekeeper."

"You get me." He reminded her loftily.

"Can you cook like Eva does?"

"Nope, but as I just demonstrated, I can do other things for you that she can't. Besides, you said that we are getting a housekeeper; we just have to find one first."

"I'm going to make that my number one priority; I've become utterly spoiled and consider a housekeeper a necessity. Hopefully I'll find a good one straight away."

"It shouldn't be that hard." Clark put in unconcerned.

"Are you nuts, a good housekeeper is worth her weight in gold which is why when people don't let them go when they find one." Lois sighed in disappointment "I tried bribing Eva to move to Metropolis with us but her family lives in Seattle so it didn't work. I even told her that I'd find her a new husband if she wanted me too, but she just laughed and said that she'd already spent years breaking in the current one, and didn't want to start all over with a new one."

"Don't worry babe, I'm sure you'll find a good one." He commiserated then rubbed her bottom suggestively "And in the meantime, I'll be happy to keep showing you what I can do for you that Eva can't."

"Deal." She tittered softly "Well I suppose our break time's over, so you'd better have your shower and then go buy us some lunch, so that we can get back to unpacking afterwards."

***

_Three Weeks Later_

Standing back to survey his handiwork, Clark smiled, brushed his hands together and nodded in satisfaction. After patting his shirt pocket to ensure the item was still safely tucked inside, he zipped to the house, up the stairs and into the office to find Lois industriously playing Mahjong on the computer. Figuring that she wasn't working so it was ok to interrupt, he stepped up behind her and had just begun to point out the tiles she could match, when she no sooner heard his voice and held up a hand.

"Don't give me any help; I'm going to win this by myself."

He grinned, folded his arms and watched patiently as she succeeded in backing herself into a corner. Swearing colourfully, she searched for any way out, knew that she'd lost once again and turned around to flatly announce "This game is rigged."

He cleared his throat and decided it wasn't the time to remind her that she'd won on some of the easier games, but the more difficult ones stumped her every time. Further deciding to get her mind of her losing streak, he caught hold of her hand and tugged gently "Come with me."

"Where?" Lois asked sulkily, getting up to follow him through the house and down to the kitchen "What's going on?"

Ignoring her questions, he smiled charmingly and made a request of his own "Close your eyes."

"Why?" She asked suspiciously.

Clark heaved out a deep breath and rolled his eyes "Just do it woman."

She gave him the fish eye before letting her lashes flutter down. Opening the back door, he led her outside, and cautioning her to keep her eyes closed, picked her up to float them down the stairs, and taking her hand in his once again, led her down the path to the back yard "Where are you taking me?"

"You'll find out soon enough." He informed her cheerfully, finally coming to stop at the edge of the garden. He stepped behind her, placed his hands on her waist, turned her around and leant down to whisper "Open your eyes."

Lashes flutter up, and her lips curved in a smile. Lois turned her head and shook it gently "You're a hopeless romantic."

"You bring it out in me." Bending he pressed his lips softly against hers "You didn't say if you liked it?"

She turned back and her smile widened at seeing their initials encircled by a love heart carved deep into the tree "How could I not?" Tracing the heart with her finger, she looked at the initials and frowned "But why did you use our middle initials?"

"Because I drew enough hearts with the initials CK and LL on my school books, so I wanted this to be completely new and different." He replied slipping his arms around her waist.

She grinned and shook her head again "We all did that in school."

"Yeah, but unless you had a crush on someone with the initials CK then it wouldn't look the same; whereas mine would have."

"So this is like a new school book?" She queried lightly.

"Nope, school books are thrown away when you don't need them anymore, but this tree is here to stay. It will stand the test of time, just as we will." He corrected, and pressed his smiling lips to hers once again.

Turning back around, Lois reached out and traced the heart with the tip of her finger before turning to him once again "It feels and looks too rough to have been done with your laser vision; did you use your finger nail or something?"

"Certainly not!" He disabused swiftly "I did it the old fashioned way, and I didn't use super strength, speed or anything else."

She grinned at the indignation in his voice, and patted his chest in comfort but couldn't help asking in surprise "Really."

"Mmm hmm; I wanted it to mean something, so I did it the same way that kids did it for hundreds of years in the good old days; with a pen knife and without using any powers." He puffed out his chest in pride

"How long did it take you?"

"The better part of two hours, but it was worth it."

Slipping her arms around his waist she hugged him tight "Well it's beautiful, and I love it, thank you."

He smiled, grasped her hand and pointed "Ok, now you walk around that side of the tree, I'll walk around this side and we'll meet in the middle ok?"

"Why?"

He heaved out a deep breath and lifted his eyes to the heavens "Because that's what they did in the olden days. The boy carved his sweeties initials in the tree, the girl would be all coyly bashful and then they'd hold hands, walk around the tree from the opposite sides and meet in the middle to kiss."

"Ah I see, ok." Lois nodded, walked around the tree, met him in the middle, took a peek at their initials, and sent him a bashful smile before coyly giggling.

Clark sent her a heartfelt smile in return, bent down to press his lips against hers then drew back startled when she promptly slapped his cheek "What was that for?"

"Well in the olden days I would have been a good girl; the kind who didn't just let any old boy kiss her y'know." She informed him prettily.

"But... but I carved our initials in the tree." He yowled indignantly.

She just sniffed haughtily in response "My daddy warned me about boys like you. He told me all about rakes who wickedly seduce innocent girls by doing sweet things. I bet you've carved hundreds of girl's initials in a tree."

Clark sent her a lecherous smile and twirled a fake moustache "A rake huh, hundreds of girls; hmmm, I like that."

Lois giggled coquettishly "Why grandma what big teeth you have."

"All the better to bite you with later my dear." He grinned wolfishly in return.

Swallowing the chuckle that wanted to pop out, she shook her head slowly instead "My daddy was right; you're a rake, and a wolf and oh my gosh...." she broke off and opened her eyes dramatically wide "....you're like Georgie Porgie who kissed the girls and made them cry."

Clark opened his mouth to retort, changed his mind and smiled wickedly in challenge "Those girls were crying out for more, come here and I'll prove it to you."

Lois sniggered and licked her lips, he licked his then wiggled his brows for emphasis. Almost chortling out loud, she sent him a shy peek of a smile before quickly pecking his lips with hers.

"Well?"

"Wow Georgie, if you don't kiss me again, I'm gonna cry." She smiled up at him and fluttered her lashes.

Smiling they leant forward until their lips met, and letting go of the hands still clasped behind the tree, their arms instead wrapped tightly around each other. Lips caressed softly, then hardened as tongues meshed lazily. Mouths parted briefly to gulp in air, only seal together again until finally deep breaths were needed by both, and lips reluctantly parted.

Lois kept her face pressed into his neck, pleasuring in being completely surrounded by him. His arms holding her close, the scent of his aftershave, the feeling of his body pressed against her softness. But at the touch of cool metal sliding on her finger, she looked down, saw the ring, and lifted her eyes to his "Clark..."

Seeing the puzzlement in her expression, he shook his head lightly "It's not an engagement ring Lo, I know you're not ready for that, and I accept you never may be. But I wanted you to have something that showed my faith in us, so I got you an eternity ring."

"I thought they were only given after you were married, like for the birth of a child or something like that."

"No, they can be given for that reason, but they're not restricted to that. They're also given for other special occasions, but an eternity ring actually symbolises the promise of everlasting love. When the diamonds go all around the band like the ones on yours does, then it depicts the love as a continuous circle that never ends." He picked up her hand and pressed his lips to the knuckle "Forever just doesn't sound enduring enough for how long I'll love you Lois, but it's the only word that fits. I wanted you to have this ring now because I don't need to wait a year, or ten or twenty to believe in us baby; I have faith right now that we'll be together forever, both in this life and beyond."

She smiled mistily and looked at her hand clasped in his, saw the diamonds twinkling in the sunlight and nodded slightly.

"Every time you look at your hand, I want you to see the ring and believe that I'm already sure of us; I always will be. When we're both old and wrinkled, with grey hair and saggy bits...." He smiled at her light watery laugh "You'll look down at your hand and the ring will still be there. Then I'll clasp your wrinkled hand in my wrinkled one, and we'll look back and remember this moment when I put it on you, and we'll smile."

She cupped his face in her hands and pressed her lips to his softly before leaning back slightly "How did you know my ring size?"

"I made it my business to find out." He smiled and stroked her cheek gently with his forefinger.

"It's a beautiful ring, thank you Clark." She swallowed back the lump and smiled sadly "I wish that I could be sure like you..."

He pressed a finger against her lip and shook his head "Not being sure doesn't mean that your love is lacking Lois. If you didn't love me enough, you'd have married me already without caring whether I'd be hurt later or not. I feel incredibly lucky to have found a woman who wants to be certain for my sake, instead of one who just gives in because it's expected of her." He finished quietly before leaning down to press his lips to hers softly "Happy anniversary Lo."

"Anniversary?"

"Uh huh, today is exactly one year since we met again in the restaurant..." He smiled and pressed his lips to her brow "...and that's where I'm taking you for dinner tonight."

Lois smiled and raked her fingers through his hair "Isn't an anniversary supposed to be from when a couple first get together or something?"

"Yep, and as I told you before, from the moment I saw you across the room, I knew that you were mine." He repeated sedately then leant down and whispered "But this time, we'll be coming home together afterwards, so I won't have to make up excuses to see you again."

"So going to see your mom, and conning your way into having dinner with Chloe and me..."

"Was all a ploy; yep." He informed her cheerfully.

She giggled and shook her head "You're extremely sneaky. When I went to bed that first night I wondered if you'd been hitting on me, and figured you were hoping to entice me into a short fling."

"Not even close, I had every intention of enticing you into spending the rest of your life with me...." He corrected smoothly, then grinned "...but I won't say it hasn't been fun bringing you round to my way of thinking."


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

_Two years later _

After stretching lazily, Clark rolled Lois under him, got comfortable then lifted up on one elbow, brushed back the hair from her brow and smiled "Well."

"Well what?" She asked puzzled.

"Don't you have anything to say?"

"About what?" She searched his face but not finding any clue, her frown grew deeper before clearing a moment later "Of course I do, I'm sorry sweetie I just forgot..." Smiling wickedly she wiggled her brows "You're the best, you were great, wow that was fantastic. How did....." She broke off in giggles when he began to laugh.

"Not that; although that is always appreciated." He chuckled lightly.

Lois grinned "Then how about...."

"Do you know what today is?" He asked, quickly cutting her off.

"Stroke the superheroes ego day?" She asked politely.

"That should be every day...." He corrected then quickly tacked on "...and you should only be stroking mine. The other guys have got their own wives or girlfriends to stroke theirs."

She tittered softly in reply.

"Let's try again; what's today?"

"Thursday."

"Very good, but not what I was getting at." He smiled into her eyes, and reaching down clasped one hand in his "Are you happy Lois?"

"Yes." She replied simply.

"Trying to think up ways to dump me?"

"No."

"Are you tired of me, sick of the sight of me?"

"No."

"Planning to give me my walking papers any day now?"

"No." She chortled and pressed her face into his neck.

"What would you do if I tried to leave?"

She leant back and brushed the hair from his brow "I'd help you to pack and wish you well."

"Really?" He asked cordially.

"Uh huh, then I'd drive to Smallville and find the biggest chunk of Kryptonite that I could, before tracking you down." She smoothed his hair again then grabbed his ear and locked her eyes determinedly with his "And after I'd reduced you to a quivering ball of fear, I'd make it very clear that if you didn't come home pronto, you'd be in even bigger trouble by the time I was done with you."

He grinned "And when I came home?"

"I'd sit you down and patiently explain that I'm a very understanding woman who totally accepts that you need your freedom." She gave his ear a little twist, and ignored the small laugh he gave at the tickle he felt. Keeping her voice perfectly straight Lois smiled nicely "Then I'd warn you not to try **MY** patience too far by ever bringing up the subject of leaving again, or I'd really give you something to cry about."

Clark let out a shout of laughter and hugged her hard "Kryptonite wouldn't work on you, but I'd find something to ensure that you got the same message if you ever tried to leave me."

Leaning forward she pressed her lips to his, and cupping his jaw, deepened the kiss sighing into his mouth when he rolled them smoothly to their sides.

Several minutes later mouths parted and lashes fluttered up. Grasping her around the waist, he floated them both up until they were sitting up against the head-board, and smiled when Lois automatically reached for his shirt that was thrown carelessly at the end of the bed. He'd always found it amusing that they could have sex anywhere and she wasn't shy. They could cuddle up naked in bed and she wasn't shy, but she always covered up if they were doing nothing more than sitting and talking, even if that talking was in bed after they'd had sex. The one time he'd mentioned it, he'd laughed when she tartly informed him that she wasn't going to sit around with her boobs on display unless there was a reason for it.

As always after she buttoned up, he reached out and undid all of them except for the one dead centre of her breasts "God you look sexy Lo."

"Thank you." She smiled, pecked his lips with hers but when she began to slide off the bed he grasped her arm and kept her with him "So getting back to what we were talking about; you wouldn't let me go huh?"

"Not in this lifetime." She told him truthfully.

"Good." He picked up her left hand, looked down at the eternity ring on her finger before lifting his eyes back to eyes "Today is exactly 27 months from when I asked you to marry me last time." He told her huskily.

"You remembered the date?" She asked in astonishment.

"Yeah, so what'd you say; will you marry me?"

"Well."

"C'mon Lo, mom would really like to see me married."

"She's already seen you married."

Clark rolled his eyes heavenward "Happily married Lo, keep up; she'd like to see me _**happily**_ married."

"But what if I don't wanna get married?"

Her voice was cordial but he heard the smile in the tone, saw the answer in her eyes, and knew that this time she was going to say yes. However, since she'd started it, he decided two could play this game and letting out a long dramatic sigh, he shook his head sadly "Then I guess I'll just have to take my dog and we'll go sleep in an alley or under a bridge somewhere. If you could spare a cardboard box that'd be great, at least then Fred will have partial shelter from the rain; well truth be told it'll have to be a big box or only his head will fit inside it, but that's better than nothing." He waved his hand airily at the confounded smile on her face "You don't have to worry about me, I'm sure that I won't get a cold or anything. I might get the sniffles but …."

"What on earth are you talking about?" Lois cut in with a laugh.

"Well if you won't marry me then I can't just keep putting out for your convenience. I do have some pride y'know, not much but some. So I'll just take **MY** dog Fred and if we're lucky we'll find a homeless shelter that will have us." He finished pleasantly.

Unable to miss what he was saying due to the emphasis he'd put on the word 'my' she corrected him kindly "Fred's my dog."

"So wrong; he _was_ your dog, then he became _our_ dog and now he's **my** dog." He informed her politely "Remember about a week after we moved here I came home from work, found you nicely rumpled and asleep so woke you up in a way that made you all the sweeter afterwards?" Her eyes narrowed but she nodded "Well, I don't know if you remember too much because you were still a little sleepy, but I asked you to sign the contract to hire Jean remember?" Her eyes turned to slits when his grin became even wider "Well I lied, what I really got you to sign was a paper giving me ownership of Fred."

"What!" She screeched wrathfully.

He nodded and with a smile reminisced pleasantly "I kissed you awake and said a whole lot of mushy stuff, and when you were looking at me all starry eyed, I asked you to sign it. Well you wanted to read it first, but I couldn't let you do that so I nicely distracted you." When her lips pursed in recollection, he smiled and prompted "I kissed your brow and said that it was just the standard contract for a housekeeper. Then I kissed your cheek and murmured that your time could be put to better use. Then I whispered that you could trust that I'd read it through carefully. Then I kissed the corner of your mouth and coaxed you to sign it, which you did while I was distracting you by kissing your neck. Then afterwards I thanked you by kissing you again, just because."

Her mouth fell open in shock "You…you coerced me."

"You make it sound so ugly." He replied, shooting her a wounded look "I prefer the term persuaded, you can even say that I appealed to your better nature, but coerced just sounds so wrong."

Lois snorted rudely in reply "You took advantage of me."

"Hmm, I suppose that sounds better than coerced; so yep." Clark replied cheerfully "But if anyone asks; like a cop, a lawyer, or a judge, then I'll say nope, and you have no witnesses that I just said yes."

"But you...you're Superman."

"Well don't you think I was super-smart?" He asked rhetorically but at the glower on her face, sighed hugely "You're right; my behaviour was totally…"

"Reprehensible, unspeakable and downright rotten."

"All of those." He grinned and nodded rapidly, then added soberly "But if it makes you feel any better, I felt so bad for doing it that I made sure to give you a big happy afterwards remember."

"You didn't feel so bad that you tore it up."

"I said that I felt bad, not that I'd lost my marbles." He riposted swiftly "Why on earth would I tear it up when I had to be all sloppy just to get you to sign it." He zipped out of bed, wrote a quick note, shoved it into his wallet, then zipped back to bed once again with the wallet in hand. Tugging out the slip of paper he'd just tucked in there, he opened it with a flourish and with a mile wide grin read out loud "I Lois Lane, hereby give my dog Fred to Clark Kent if he asks me to marry him and I say no. So just to be clear dear reader; if I don't marry Clark, Fred now belongs to him."

"Give me that!" She demanded with a snigger of laughter.

He passed it over; she read it and promptly chortled out loud "It doesn't say that at all."

"No, well maybe I gave you the wrong slip of paper." He replied lightly.

"Maybe you're just full of blarney." She cleared her throat and read out "Always remember to buy the quilted soft toilet paper because that's the kind Lois likes." She grinned and leaning forward pressed her lips to his "Now that's love."

He tapped his nose and nodded "I read in one of your women's magazines that it's the little things that mean the most."

Smiling she wrapped her arms around his torso and hugged him hard "You old romantic."

He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, then tilted up her chin up and smiled tenderly "I could say and do all manner of romantic things Lo, but I don't want to do anything that will make you feel coerced. So I'm going to ask, and I'll ask as many times as you want me to, or I'll never ask again if that's what you prefer." He took a deep breath and continued softly "Lois Lane I love you more today than when I saw you in that restaurant three years ago and knew that our lives would forever be entwined. More than the night you said that you loved me for the first time, and more than when I asked you to marry me over two years ago. After three years together I know you so well, and yet you can still surprise me on occasion; I take both comfort and delight in that. There's nothing I wouldn't do for you Lo, and nothing you could ask for that I won't give except to stop loving you. Please baby, marry me."

"Yes." She answered softly.

His arms wrapped tight around her torso, hers around his and they hugged tight. Leaning back he smiled into her eyes "Thank you."

"Don't thank me; one day when I become a right fishwife you'll wonder why on earth you didn't run away when you had the chance." She stated with a light eye roll.

"That is true; there have been the odd occasions when you've driven me round the bend and I've thought about running away..." He informed her readily then laughed when she smacked his arm "....see like that. Physical abuse is never the answer babe, but I must be a total deviate since I enjoy it when you smack me. And running away won't solve anything because if I ever decide to do that, I'll be grabbing two things before I hit the road. You're the first and Fred's the second."

"Aww that's so sweet." She smiled at him mushily.

He nodded solemnly "Well I am a sweet guy, and being Superman I also take my responsibilities seriously. It's my job to help keep the world safe, and just what kind of superhero would I be if I let you and Fred loose on an unsuspecting world?" He guffawed when she pinched him.

"Well I'm a superhero in my own right..." When his brows lifted in amusement she stuck her nose in the air "Just what kind of Superman would you be if you weren't getting any from me on a regular basis?"

He looked at her horrified "Bite your tongue and don't joke about that ever again."

She giggled and nodded proudly "So how do you want to do this? Should we go to the registry office and get married there, or do you want to fly us to Vegas?"

"We're doing nothing of the sort, we're getting married properly. You in a dress, me in tux with all our friends and family around, and then we're going to have a big reception." He told her firmly.

"Clark c'mon we've both been married before and we're not kids, we don't need the big wedding." Lois smiled patiently.

"Like hell woman, you've kept me waiting for three years, so you owe me a big wedding." He returned stubbornly.

"It's only been two years since you last asked me." She replied drolly.

"Yeah, but considering I was ready to marry you the night we met, its three years all told." He finished briskly.

"Why are you playing the role of the girl?"

He smiled smugly "Actually I'm being the man who intends to tie you to me with as much rope as I can. Now that you've said yes I'm not going to let you get out of it, and I figure a big wedding will be just the thing."

"Fine, but I'm not wearing white."

"Damn it! Are you telling me you're not a virgin?" He demanded wrathfully.

"I didn't say that, I just said I'm not wearing white." She replied coyly.

"Woo hoo, I got me the last living virgin; momma will be so proud." He wiggled his brows and patted her hip in joy.

Lois giggled at his antics, and picking up his cell-phone from the nightstand, Clark held it aloft like a prize "Speaking of which, we'd better call the parents and give the good news." He paused for a moment and considered out loud "Do you realise that I'm now 37 and you're 38, so it's taken you 20 years since we first met, to finally figure out that I'm the man for you." He shook his head sadly "You are soooo slow, I knew it all along..."

She coughed lightly "Bullshit!"

"Fine, but I knew as soon as I saw you again, but you still took 20 years." He smirked rudely.

She shook her head "I like the way you phrased it, so that it still sounds like you knew when we were kids." Her brow cocked up, he shrugged unembarrassed. Nodding affably, Lois drawled "Right, so let's get this straight. For the first two years neither of us was interested in the other, the following 15 we didn't even see each other..."

He held up a hand forestalling her any further "Right, so going by what you just said, I did know almost instantaneously. See we can't count the first 17 years for obvious reason as you just pointed out, so I knew straight away, but you took 20 years." He sent her a beatific smile.

"If we're not counting the first 17 years, then it only took me 3 years, not 20." She laughed back.

"I think it sounds more romantic that I knew straight away, but you took 20 years." Clark replied stubbornly.

"Ok, so you knew straight away. Umm, so just one question; what was all the...." She lifted her hands and crooked her fingers in the quote sign "....'I heart Lana' all about?"

"Details, details so I made a little mistake, big deal...." Clark waved his hand airily "...my whole relationship with Lana just proves that I was alien teenage boy, as opposed to a human one, nothing more." He tilted his head and considered "Y'know she was always suspicious of me, and she did say that she knew I was different. Hmmm; maybe....maybe...it makes sense, yeah....hmmm...."

"How?" Lois asked lightly, cutting into his train of thought. When Clark looked at her blankly, she nudged "How does it prove that you're an alien; and what on earth were you just muttering about?"

"Well I told you that Lana was always accusing me of hiding something from her both before and after we dated right?" Lois nodded amused, he nodded wisely in return "Well I used to think it was because I made up lame excuses and stuff, but now I think she knew that I was an alien all along and was just determined to make my life hell until I confessed all." Clark rolled his eyes and held out a hand in appeal "Let's face it, how many human teenage boys would put up with a girl bitching at them for years, _before_ she ever once put out? Not too bloody many, I can tell you that much." He snorted indelicately "Maybe if he was getting some; hell getting anything but a whole bucket load of aggravation a guy would put up with it, but having to deal with her shit on a daily basis would soon get old, if there was absolutely no reward in it for him except for the odd smile or two. Believe me, only an alien teenage boy would keep on with the 'I love Lana' crap, when he was getting nowhere fast for years like I was, but a human teenage boy; hah not in a million billion years. _**That's**_ how she knew there was something different about me, I was way more tolerant and understanding with all her paranoia's than a normal guy would be."

Lois laughed out loud "Y'know that does make sense. None of the guys I knew as teenagers would've stuck around for years in the faint hope I'd get off their case, and want to be their girlfriend. And all the sweet smiles and soft words I favoured them with, wouldn't stop them from doing the deed with other girls who were a lot less trouble and a whole lot more accommodating; even if they were still hot for me."

He nodded emphatically "Exactly! So there you go; another mystery solved. Lana was just a juvenile alien mistake. You however..."

"If you say I make you feel human, I'm gonna smack you one." Lois cut in mockingly.

"Nah, you make me feel closer to humanity, but since you're a little hellion in bed I'm glad that I have superpowers, because I need them just to keep up with you." When she blushed, he grinned "Now getting back to the point, as my little mistake with Lana can be totally blamed on me being an alien, it no longer counts. And since I fell for you and knew that you were mine from the moment I saw you in the restaurant, I knew straight away but you didn't; so there."

She opened her mouth to retort, but at the scratching on the door ended up laughing instead. Getting up, Clark pulled on his pants, and let the dog in "Hey Fred, guess what, we don't have to worry about living in a homeless shelter anymore; she said yes."

The dog woofed at the sound of his name then trotted over to the bed and planted his paws on the mattress. His eyes closed in delight when Lois scratched him under the chin, and when Clark sat beside him and absently ran one hand over his back, he snorted softly in pleasure. Sliding to the edge, Lois hooked an arm around Clark's waist and leant her head on his shoulder as he began pushing buttons on the phone still clasped in his hand, and at the sound of his voice, her head lifted.

"Hi mom; guess what...." He waited a beat then smiled hugely "Lois and I are getting married." He quickly pulled the phone away, rubbed his ear and smiled lopsided at his fiancée "Mom's kind of excited."

"I can tell." Lois replied with a laugh at hearing the noise issuing from the receiver. Taking the phone from his hand, she put it to her ear and called out "Martha...Martha...hi. Thank you but I didn't do....oh well um, uh huh, oh ok but...yes of course....I love you too." Her brow wrinkled "Do you wanna talk to Clark? Hang on and I'll put him back on..." Turning she held the phone out to him "Here you go, don't expect to say much, just make noises and it'll keep her happy."

He grinned and took the phone back "I never thought I'd see the day that Lois Lane couldn't get a word in edgewise."

She rolled her eyes feelingly "Me neither."

Putting the phone back to his ear, he said hello and felt his smile widen as his mom continued to chatter away. When she finally ran down to take a breath, he quickly rushed into speech "Mom, I was thinking that with tomorrow being Friday, how would you like me to come pick you up to spend the weekend with us." At the affirmative response he nodded "Good, and pack a dress to wear for dinner, because I'm taking you, Lois and Chloe out to celebrate on Saturday night." When she squawked indignantly he quickly cut in "Mom, you're the first person we've called. I haven't told Chloe yet, but I know that when she hears the news that she'll be happy for Lo and me too, and I'd like to take my three favourite ladies out for dinner."

"Oh well, ok sweetie; I just thought it was a nerve calling me after telling your friends but since you didn't, that's ok." Martha paused and the grin on her face once again bloomed "Oh honey, I'm so so happy for you both. I'll let you go so that you can call Sam, and I'll see you tomorrow night. I love you Clark."

"I love you too mom." Clicking off, he turned and rolled his eyes "She started yelling at me because she thought we'd told Chloe before her."

Lois shoulders continued to shake silently "I could tell from your end of the conversation." Calming down she took the phone from his hand, and called her dad. When the line was picked up she smiled "Hi Alice its Lois..." At the greeting from her stepmother, the two women chatted pleasantly for several minutes, before the older woman offered to call her husband to the phone.

"Hi daddy, um I have something to tell you, but first you'd better sit down." He laughed and did as asked then almost bounced up out of his chair at her next words "Clark and I are getting married."

"My little girl's getting married..." Sam smiled hugely then chuckled when she reminded him this was her third time at bat "I know Lo, but your first marriage was just a youthful mistake, and your marriage to Joe was a mistake of a different kind. Although I liked Joe very much, he wasn't the one for you, but I believe Clark is. You had to discover that in your own time, and in your own way, but I knew it when I met him at your place a couple of years ago." He reached for tissue to wipe his eyes and blow his nose "My little Lo is getting married. I imagine your mom would be very happy to know her girl has found a man that she'd be proud to call son in law as much as I am."

"Thank you daddy...um here's Clark." Lois smiled and handed the phone to her fiancée, before reaching for a tissue herself.

Clark put the phone to his ear, and rubbed her back soothingly with his free hand "Hi Sam."

"Congratulations son, and welcome to the family."

"It's not official yet." Clark reminded him with a smile.

"It hasn't been official for the last couple of years but that doesn't make it any less true then the last time I said it; and this time it's almost official." Sam returned jovially.

"Yeah it is; thank you." He grinned in return.

"So any ideas on what you're going to do? I know that Lo's already had the big fancy wedding, and you've been married before as well, but that shouldn't stop the two of you from doing it up big; and I'd really like to see my little girl married properly." Sam wheedled persuasively then coughed when his wife poked him in the side "Of course it's totally up to you and Lo to decide what you want."

"We're haven't worked out dates or anything, but it's not going to be some cheap shabby affair Sam so you don't have to worry. I've already told Lo that we're going to get married properly and she's not changing my mind." Clark smiled at his fiancée, and hooked an arm around her waist to cuddle her into his side.

Sam grinned hugely at the news "That's the way son; start as you mean to go on. Don't let these women push you around or..." When his wife shushed him, he stumbled to a halt "Ok, well whatever you and Lois decide is fine with me as long as I'm there, and you're doing it all official like, I'll be happy."

Hearing Alice shushing her husband Clark sniggered quietly, and said a few more words before passing the phone back to Lois. After speaking for a few more minutes to her dad, she held out the receiver so both could hear Alice's shouted congratulations and the call was finally concluded.

He picked up his fiancée, sat her on his lap and rubbed her thigh gently with his hand "It's official now that we've told our parents, but, and I mean this Lo; if at any time you feel overwhelmed by all the fuss don't be scared to tell me. This is about us, our plans, our wedding and I just want us to be together and happy; no regrets, ok?"

She nodded and lifting her hand to his cheek swept her thumb over his lips "I'm not going to say that I'm not nervous because I am, but once upon a time I couldn't even imagine getting married again, and yet here I am. Falling in love with someone was easy for me to do, but staying in love with them was something that seemed impossible. With you it doesn't take any effort, I don't have to try, I just love you. Two years ago that scared me, but it doesn't anymore." She paused to take a breath and smiled dolefully "Daddy said that Joe wasn't the right one for me, and he hit the nail on the head. As nice and sweet as Joe was, we just didn't fit."

"Well as nice and sweet as Lana pretended to be, we didn't fit either Lo." Clark smiled lopsided when she snorted softly in amusement "We do baby, you and I do."

She nodded "I'll make a deal with you..." At the curiosity on his face, she let out a small sigh "I'll tell you if I want to call off the wedding, if you in turn promise to tell me if you want us to break up after that. I wouldn't blame you for a minute and..."

Clark shook his head "That won't happen Lois, if you want to call it off then we will, but you and I will still be together no matter what." He clasped her hand and brought it up so they could both see the ring "Eternity Lo, that's what we have, and always will. I want marriage, but I don't need it; I just need you. I learnt a long time ago that having the things I need, are a hell of a lot more important than acquiring the things that I want."

She wrapped her arms around him and hugged hard chuckling lightly when Fred got tired of being ignored and barked loudly in indignation. Turning to smile at the mutt, they reached out to pat him and after he'd received enough attention from them, he lifted his leg and gave himself a good wash, causing them chortle in amusement.

Standing, Clark walked to the en-suite with Lois in his arms, set her down on her feet, turned on the taps, swiftly took off his pants and the shirt she was wearing, then ushered her into the shower ahead of him.

At the amusement on her face, he grabbed the shower puff, poured out a generous portion of body wash onto it then handed it over "If I let you shower alone you'll be in here for hours, and it's time for dinner. You might be able to keep me waiting, but Fred's not going to be happy licking himself for long, and you know how he pouts if he's not fed on time, so get soaping woman."

Lois smacked him lightly, took the puff and got down to business.

After dinner, they called Chloe who squealed almost as loudly as Martha had, and when told the older woman was coming to spend the weekend, was more than happy to say that she'd pack a bag and return with Clark after work the following night.

The three women had kept up their monthly visits, but had come to a new arrangement. One weekend was spent in Smallville, and one in Metropolis. When Martha came for the weekend, Chloe stayed with Lois and Clark as well. She lived less than 20 minutes away from her cousin, but as none of the women wanted to miss out on the fun, Chloe staying alone at her apartment wasn't even considered as an option.

***

_Four months later_

They'd elected to be married in the botanic gardens, and hold the reception in their backyard. Lois looked around the marquee and smiled. The wedding co-ordinator they'd chosen had taken care of everything; from the number of servers required, to parking permits and driver, the catering, the music and DJ, the lights, everything. The only thing they'd had to do was make decisions on colour schemes, what food and drinks they wanted served, and to pay the bills as they came in.

Even the weather had been kind, instead of being stiflingly hot, the previous night's rain had cooled the air, and the open sides of the marquee, along with the strategically placed fans had kept the temperature airy, instead of humid.

Everyone was having a blast, they were having the proper wedding which Clark wanted, but there was no formal stuffiness, which is what she appreciated.

Once the toasts had all been made, and Clark had led her around the floor once for the bridal waltz, other couples joined in, and then the party began in earnest.

While chatting with her girlfriends, Lois kept watch to ensure no one was feeling left out, and smiled at finding people moving about freely; dancing, chatting, mixing and mingling, jumping from table to table.

Her smile grew at seeing Martha chatting to a couple of women from the JLA, her dad and Uncle Gabe conversing with Perry White and Cat Grant. Her eyes flicked around to find her both her dad's wife Alice and Perry's wife Alice holding a smiling discussion with J'onn, then a moment later they were all laughing; and Jimmy flirting shamelessly with her sister Lucy, who was flirting right back.

Feeling eyes boring into her, Lois turned around and became snagged by the gaze of her husband.

***

"Well Clark, you finally got her to say 'I do'." Bruce laughed and slapped his friend on the back.

"Yeah, it's taken us 20 years to finally get here, but we made it in the end." He grinned in satisfaction.

"Well the two of you have been together for three years, so this was really just a formality." Oliver reminded him.

"I know, but it's a formality that I'm glad we did, and I'm sure you know what I mean Ollie, since you all but carried Dina to the altar a year ago." Clark smirked readily.

"Yep, who knew that my very own Princess Charming was going to be a woman that belted me the first time we met?" Oliver grinned and lifted his glass in a toast before taking a sip.

Clark likewise lifted his glass "That's pretty much what Lois did to me. She used to punch me in the arm all the time, and I used to be snotty in return."

Bart chuckled in amusement "That's the kind of thing little boys and girls do when they're in grade school to show they like each other."

Clark let out a muffled snort "Oh my god you're right. It wasn't the girls you were nice to that you really liked, it was the ones you were mean to. They were the ones you were scared of laying your heart at their feet at, in case they turned up their nose and crushed all your hopes."

"So you pulled their hair and called them names to show you didn't care if they liked you or not, but it was also a very sneaky way of keeping their attention on you." AC summed up neatly, causing all the men to laugh in remembrance of their school days.

"So does that mean Lois and you secretly liked each other way back when?" Victor asked inquisitively.

"Well we were kids but we weren't children when we knew each other previously. However, I think deep down I knew that she was the one but I wasn't ready for her, anymore than she was ready for me. So we kept our interest hidden, not only from each other, but also from ourselves." He summed up neatly before taking a sip of his drink.

"Uh huh; so to prove that you weren't interested in Lois, you actually took it as far as marrying Lana and Lois meanwhile not only forgot your very existence, but married someone else too." Bart clarified politely.

"Yes thank you Bart." Clark replied dryly "I was a BDA, and Lois was clueless, how's that?"

"Well that sounds more accurate at least." Oliver snorted softly, ignoring Clark's droll look as his shoulders shook silently with laughter.

"To women." Bruce lifted his glass in salute, and all the men raised their glasses in turn, before clinking them together and sipping at the contents.

Looking over at his new bride, Clark smiled. If she'd never married him it wouldn't have changed anything, and yet now that he could call her his wife, it had indeed changed everything. She was all his; his to keep, love and cherish until the end of time and he was going to do just that.

The last time he'd gotten married he'd felt happily relieved that he no longer had to worry about ending up alone. When his feelings for Lana had withered in the face of reality, the prospect of being alone had been far preferable to being with her. This time there was no happy relief, just plain happiness. In their three years together, he'd never once wished that he was somewhere else, nor that Lois was anyone else. They'd had their good and bad times, but he wouldn't change a thing. His love for Lois had grown, deepened and was firmly entrenched in bedrock.

There was nothing about her that he didn't adore; her practical no nonsense approach to life, the non-stop chatter about any old crap that popped into her head, the way she screeched when ticked off, quietly grumbled when annoyed, her gentle sweetness that was so rarely seen, and even her argumentative stubbornness which had exasperated him on more than one occasion.

Fighting with her was fun, making up was even better, and having sex when one or both of them was pissed off was an adventure all on its own. Their sex life was more exciting now than it had been in the beginning. Then it was new and exciting, and the passion explosive. Now that they'd learnt what brought the most pleasure to the other, the passion was even more intense as all the senses were heightened in anticipation for what they knew was coming.

He'd never once worried that Lois would want to break up, had never once contemplated the thought of what he would do if she grew tired or bored with their relationship, but it felt so good to know that she now knew just as he did, that they belonged together.

When she looked around and up, her eyes met his, and he was caught.

***

Lois felt her heart turn over at the warmth in her husband's eyes. The last time she'd been in this position she'd wanted to be happy, she'd determined to be happy, and had ruthlessly pushed aside any lingering feelings of doubt. This time there were none. She'd been expecting it to happen, had gone to sleep every night for the past month wondering if that was the last night she'd feel confident, but had woken up every morning knowing that she wasn't making a mistake.

She loved Clark, really and truly loved him. She'd been 35 and had a lot of mistakes to her credit when she met him again. By then she'd decided that she was done with love; but what she'd really been done with was getting it wrong. She was 36 when she fell in love with him, and now she was 38 and finally knew that at long last, she'd gotten it right. He was the man that she'd love until the day she died, the one she wanted to spend the rest of her life with; the one that she always wanted at her side.

When she'd suggested that Clark should get a room the night before their wedding at the same hotel his friends were staying at, to ensure they wouldn't have bad luck on the day, figuring that in her case they needed all the good luck they could get; he'd swiftly informed her that wasn't going to happen. Actually, his response had been "To hell with that! I'm sleeping in our bed with you right there beside me. We don't need luck, we have love and that's what I believe in."

Well they had indeed treated last night like any other, and when she'd woken up this morning, she'd found him smiling at her, and had no sooner wished him before his lips were fastened to hers as his hands began to wander. They'd made love and were gearing up for a second round when the unmistakable sounds of his mom, Chloe and Fred stirring had put an end to any more morning friskiness.

It was his mom who'd finally kicked him out of the house. Clark in fact had made up his mind that the two of them would get ready for the wedding together, when Martha put her foot down. Not caring about bad luck was one thing, but he was not going to see his brides dress before the ceremony and that was final.

Not that she was wearing an actual wedding dress, there she'd put her foot down. She'd found a beautiful dress that she loved, which had cost her a bundle, but one that could easily be worn for other occasions which had been her first priority.

When Fred trotted to Clark's side and bumped his leg, she grinned when he looked down at the mutt in tolerant amusement.

***

Feeling Fred nudging at his leg, his gaze broke from his wife's to look down at the dog. The mutt certainly enjoyed having people around. He'd barked and frolicked with the kids, had schmoozed to get eats from the various guests, and had now decided he wanted some personal attention from one of his owners. Since the mutt had already received a goodly share from Lois earlier, Clark guessed it was his turn to lavish.

***

"Are you and Clark going on a honeymoon?" At the question, Lois turned her attention back to her friend Abra and nodded.

"Yeah, we're flying out tomorrow morning." She smiled then wiggled her brows "We figured that since we'd be doing the same thing no matter where we were, why tire ourselves out with flying all over the globe today, when we can just as easily do it tomorrow and be nice and comfortable right here in our own bedroom tonight."

The woman laughed in agreement "Do you know where he's taking you?" Carly asked cheerfully.

"Bermuda." Lois replied with a bright grin.

"Oooh nice."

"Yeah, I haven't been there before and I'm certainly looking forward to it."

"Who wouldn't?" Chloe interjected wistfully "So have you packed heaps of sexy lingerie?"

"Yep, but I wouldn't be surprised if I don't get to wear any of it." She giggled and took a sip of champagne.

Sniggering lightly, the women nodded and began to discuss their husband's preferences to them being naked, verses them wearing sexy nightwear.

Excusing herself a little while later, Lois made her way to the group of men, smiling when her husband's arm automatically slipped around her waist then turned at the sound of her name.

"So Lois, we were wondering if you and Clark were interested in each other when you were kids but didn't want to admit it, which is the why you gave each other a hard time. What'd you think?" Bruce asked cordially.

"No." She replied, taking a sip of champagne. When Clark began to cough, she happily pounded him on the back, while the men sniggered.

"Baby couldn't you at least let the idea stew for a minute, before saying no so bluntly?" He asked grieved "Think about it, back then we bugged each other constantly, and some psychologists would say that was a form of foreplay. So it makes sense that we purposely got on each other's nerves to ensure that feelings wouldn't get in the way of what we wanted at the time, because we knew that once together, there'd be no turning back for either of us."

She nodded consideringly, the men grinned and when Clark shot them all a look, they cleared their throats but their lips continued to twitch.

"Well Lo, now that you've had time to think about it, don't you agree that my theory holds some water?" Clark smiled at her winningly.

"No." She replied once again, but at the look on his face, pursed her lips and corrected "Sorry, I mean no sweetie."

Bart guffawed, Bruce and AC leant on each other's shoulders laughing helplessly, Oliver cracked up, and Victor let out a shout of laughter before chuckling at the complacent smile on her face.

Clark just shook his head sadly "Not even married for one day and already I'm being shot down by my wife." When Fred barked, he looked down and nodded "You agree with me don't you boy?"

The dog looked between them, whined and moved to sit at Lois' feet.

***

_Later that night_

"Well Mrs Kent you're now officially mine." Clark slipped his arms loosely around her waist as the two swayed softly to the music.

Lois tilted her head and lifted one brow "Yours, you do realise that married or not I don't actually belong to you."

He bent to press his lips to her check, and trailing his mouth slowly to her ear, blew softly and felt the tiny betraying shiver through her body "Yes you do; married or not." He whispered. Not giving her time to answer, his mouth captured hers, lips caressed and moulded then opened to allow tongues to slowly tangle and joust gently. His tongue glided over hers, before exploring the deep recesses of her mouth, over her teeth, the gums, the soft flesh of her inner cheeks before returning to stroke and meld with hers.

Her hands tugged his shirt loose to slip underneath and glide up his back, to his shoulder blades and down again; moving in ever widening circles.

In turn his fingers grasped the zip tab, tugging it down slowly, before pushing the material off her shoulders to pool at her feet. Their lips parted for a moment before sealing together again, his hands slid up her back, unclipped the fastening of her bra and smoothed it away. Lois' fingers became busy slipping the buttons of his shirt free before pushing the shirt off his shoulders and down his arms. Once free of restrictions, their arms wrapped around each other, full soft breasts cushioned against hard masculine muscle causing them to groan at the feeling of skin against skin.

When their lips parted, lashes fluttered up and eyes caught. Clark pressed his hands to the middle of her back, then gently abraded her breasts against his chest, feeling the same delicious pleasure that he could see glowing in her eyes. Slipping his hands to her waist he lifted her up slightly "Wrap your legs around me baby." As soon as she did as asked, he walked to the bed and fell down onto it with his beloved held securely in his embrace.

Lifting up slightly, he smiled down at his new bride "We're married."

"Uh huh."

"There's no getting away for you now." He teased gently.

"I paid the celebrant to put an escape clause in the contract." She teased back just as softly.

He grinned and winked "I paid him extra to take it out again."

She laughed softly and tugged his head down to capture his mouth with hers.

Turning them on their sides afterwards, his hand smoothed down her side, over her thigh and back up again.

"I need you Lois, more every day. Before you I didn't realise that anyone could be so vital to my existence, but you are." He stroked her cheek gently with one finger before rubbing it along her bottom lip "I don't think I could cope if I ever lost you Lo."

"I didn't believe that I would ever be lucky enough to find a lifetime love, but I know that I have found it in you." She replied quietly, raking her fingers through his hair "I'm sorry that I didn't know just what I had all this time, sorry for lumping you in with all my other failures."

He shook his head slightly "You needed to be sure baby, and I understood that."

"I can't give you first love Clark; but I can give you last love." She told him softly.

His lips lifted in a smile of unbound happiness "Last love is what I can give you too, and I'll happily accept it in exchange because unlike most instances, where love's concerned being last is the most important. By its very name _first love_ means that others will come after, but _last love_ signifies that you've finally found the one person you'll love for the rest of your life, and there won't ever be anyone else for you again."

"Yes." Moving a fraction closer, Lois cupped his cheek with her hand and pressed her lips to his "Yes."


	32. Chapter 32

Hello everyone; well this is it; the ending to Second Chance. In my opening I said this was going to be a simple romance, well I don't think I strayed too far from the truth with that statement. However, I have to admit the story ended up being a LOT longer than I anticipated when I first started writing it.

So here we go, but just a quick warning; this is a very long update, so get yourself a snack, a drink, use the facilities and get comfortable.

Linda

***

**Chapter 32**

_Three Years Later_

"Hi mom."

Martha looked up in surprise, automatically lifting her cheek for his kiss "Hi sweetie, what are you doing here?"

"I just thought I'd pop in to say hi."

Hearing a tone in her son's voice that she hadn't heard in many a year, but knowing what it meant she didn't bother wasting time with small talk, just pointed to a stool at the kitchen island "Sit." Clark sat, watched as his mom poured them both a cup of coffee and then took a seat opposite "Now tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing, I'm just...." At the look on her face he stuttered to a halt, swiped his hand over the back of his neck and shrugged miserably "It's Lois, I don't know what's wrong but she's changed mom."

"In what way?"

He picked up his coffee to sip, but put it down without doing so and let out a heavy sigh "Most everything I say or do seems to annoy her lately. She gets irritated, or snaps and snarls for no reason. I've tried to be patient, but it's getting harder all the time. We've fought more in the past few weeks than we ever have before."

"Have you tried talking to her?" Martha asked quietly.

He blew out a soft breath and shook his head "Not really, I sort of mentioned she was being funny once, and she hit the roof demanding to know what in hell I was accusing her off."

"How long has this being going on for?" She asked concerned.

"Almost a month...." He paused and smiled sadly "I'm scared mom. One thing I never doubted the whole time I was courting Lo, was that she'd realise we belonged together. This is the first time I've ever been really scared of losing her. On the one hand I want to confront her and find out what the problem is, on the other I'm afraid she'll say something that I don't want to hear."

Reaching out she picked up his hand and held it cupped with both of hers "Sweetie, I know what it is that you don't want to hear, but burying your head in the sand isn't the way to hold onto her." She squeezed his hand gently and asked directly "Do you really think Lois doesn't love you anymore?"

He winced slightly, but shook his head "No, I'm sure she does, but that's not always enough is it?"

"No, but the two you have more than that Clark."

He swallowed hard and admitted softly "I thought so too, but now I'm not even sure if she even likes me anymore."

"There could be something on her mind that she's worried about, you need to make her talk Clark." Martha replied firmly before letting his hand go and giving it a pat.

"Even our sex life isn't enough anymore. Lately she hasn't wanted to, and when I coax her into it, her effort is half-hearted at best so any good feeling doesn't last for long." He sighed once again.

"Sex isn't enough to keep people together sweetie." She replied softly.

He bobbed his head "I know, I just keep hoping it'll put us back on track. That was one area we never had a problem with before so..." He trailed off and shrugged unhappily "God mom, I don't know what I'm going to do if she tells me she doesn't want to be with me any longer."

"Honey this is why you need to talk to her. Something like that doesn't just happen overnight with couples who are as dedicated to each other as you and Lois are. You said this has been going on for almost a month, and that tells me it's not that she doesn't love you, but is trying to handle something on her own and not coping with it too well."

He took a deep breath "We haven't had a problem with communication in years, so I don't know what could be on her mind that she's not willing to share with me. Only a few months ago; hell even a month ago she was fine, we were fine, and now...."

"Exactly sweetie, there's no way Lois could go from wanting to be with you, to not wanting to be with you in the space of a month, unless something drastic happened to cause that; in which case you'd know what it was already." He looked down at the bench and nodded uncertainly. Reaching out she tilted up his chin "Make Lois talk, make her tell you what's wrong. It might be something most people would consider minor, but for her it's major which is why she hasn't said anything and is trying to carry it herself, but until you know you can't help her. Even if she argues about discussing it at first, I think Lois will appreciate you pushing the issue and getting her to open up. But don't just keep ignoring it hoping that everything will resolve itself, ok?" When he nodded, she hopped of the stool and hugged him hard, before pressing a kiss against the top of his head "Now go home and talk to your wife."

He stood and slipped his arms around her waist "I will; thanks mom."

Stopping above his house minutes later, Clark x-rayed down and found Lois asleep on the chaise lounge in the gazebo with Fred curled up at her feet.

As they'd both loved the gazebo that had been attached to their house in Seattle, they'd had one erected a few months after moving in here. It was their favourite place to sit and enjoy the romance of the night together, with just the fairy lights twinkling in the garden, soft music playing in the background, drinking wine and making out. Lois had told him and Chloe once that was what she considered heaven; and he'd come to feel the same way.

Zipping down, he sped into the house, quickly changed into shorts and t-shirt, came back downstairs and stepped outside the backdoor from the kitchen, directly into the gazebo.

Seeing her lying there asleep, his lips curved in remembrance of the first time he'd found her like this. Then he'd gone to see her in Seattle with the aim of coaxing her into a relationship after she'd left Metropolis. This time he was hoping to coax her into telling him what was troubling her.

When he stepped forward, the dog awoke, sat up, saw who it was and woofed softly in greeting. Bending down Clark ruffled Fred's fur, and leant forward to press a gentle kiss on his wife's lips.

Her lashes fluttered up, her lips lifted in a little half smile "Hi."

"Hi." When she swung her feet of the lounge, he took a seat beside her and bent to press his lips to hers gently once more "How long have you been out here?"

Lois stretched languidly and shrugged "About an hour I guess, I came out here just after Jean left for the day."

They sat in silence for half an hour, enjoying the closing of the day, before retreating inside for dinner.

***

_Later that night_

While watching TV with his wife curled up beside him, Clark knew that his mom was right. He couldn't put it off any longer; it was time to talk.

For the past month Lois' moods had swung like a pendulum. Most of the time it felt like he was living with Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde; and Hyde was the dominating personality. She was fine but quiet one moment, to irritated and snarling the next. The reasons for her ire had ranged from the flimsiest to the most inane, and it all seemed to be directed at him.

He didn't want to have this conversation, didn't want to open a can of worms that could potentially blow up in his face, but had to. He just didn't know what he was going to say if she told him that she'd mistaken her heart again and no longer wanted to be him, didn't love him. He could take a lot of things, but not that.

But if his mom was right, if Lois was worried about something and trying to carry the burden on her own shoulders then he wanted to know what it was. He didn't care how trivial it seemed, it was important to her, so it was important to him.

When he'd come home earlier and woken her up, the expression in her eyes had made his heart pound. It had been...god he'd felt just as he did the first time she'd told him that she loved him. He'd mistakenly thought whatever was troubling her was over with, but now he wasn't so sure. During dinner she'd smiled and talked but had clearly been distracted. She'd looked at him carefully almost anxiously at times, but had quickly averted her eyes when he looked up.

For the past hour he'd ignored the way she'd grown increasingly fidgety, had pretended not to notice her eyes sliding in his direction almost compulsively every two minutes, but enough was enough. She'd cleared her throat three times in the past ten minutes but hadn't spoken, and was now chewing her lip anxiously. He knew two things; he wasn't letting her go, and pretending everything was alright wasn't the way to hold onto her. He was scared, but his mom was right, it was time to face the situation head on.

"Lois."

"Hmm."

Clark switched off the TV, shifted to face her and tried to smile "You haven't been yourself for a while now. You've been kind of...." He trailed off and shrugged "Have I done something to upset you, forgotten an occasion; said something that hurt you?" When she shook her head, he took a deep breath and asked quietly "Do you still love me Lo?"

"Of course I do." She replied shocked. Reaching forward she hugged him hard "God Clark I know that I've been well....crabby lately, but I'm sorry for making you feel like you did something wrong because you haven't; you haven't." She repeated earnestly, and leaning back cupped his face in her hands "I love you and...shit!" She broke off and shook her head "I'm sorry Clark, really sorry. I know I've been acting unreasonably; hell I've been downright mean, but I never meant to....."

Letting out his breath in a soft whoosh, he likewise cupped her face and cut into the self-condemnation "Stop Lo; you've been upset and I should have said something instead of staying quiet." Trying to coax without pushing, he asked quietly "Please baby just tell me what's wrong. I know there's something on your mind and I'd like to help if I can."

She nodded and smiled hesitantly "I was going to tell you tonight, I've been trying to figure out how to do it but...."

"Are you having an affair with the local tradesman?" He teased lightly, hoping to lighten the atmosphere now that his fears had proven groundless, and felt better again when her smile became genuine.

"Gee, you've just saved me the trouble of having to say it." She bantered in return, before letting go of his face to clasp his hand and pressing gently "How old am I?"

Knowing she still loved him made him feel jubilant, knowing she wasn't upset with him made him feel relieved, but having to answer her question made him afraid.

"Ummm…" Now that he knew she wasn't intending to leave him, he wondered if making up a Superman emergency and flying away would be against the marriage handbook.

"Clark…" Lois nudged.

"Baby you don't like me to remind you." He smiled timidly and knew she wasn't impressed when she just rolled her eyes.

"Just answer the question."

"41" He breathed out quietly.

"That's right I'm 41..." She sent him a sheepish half smile and shrugged "...and I'm pregnant."

"Really!" He grinned jovially.

"Really." She nodded slightly, before blowing out a soft breath.

His smiled dimmed at the apology in her voice, his mouth opened to ask her if she was unhappy about it, but when she continued talking he decided not to interrupt and felt better for it a moment later when he understood why she'd sounded regretful.

"I didn't think it was possible so the prospect never even entered my head, but I knew that I'd been acting like queen bitch of the universe for weeks now, and yet I couldn't seem to stop. So I went to see the doctor a few days ago hoping he could tell me what was going on, and he called me this morning, asked me to come in, and when I did he gave me the news." She smiled lopsided "You've been lucky enough to be spared, but do you remember when I told you years ago that I take vitamins and stuff to combat PMS because I'm a nasty piece of work if I don't, and everyone around me suffers otherwise."

Clark nodded feelingly "I remember Lo, but as you pointed out I've never had to deal with you going through it. However, I can now say it makes all the jokes about it less funny, because it sure hasn't been fun the past month."

She patted his arm in sympathy "The jokes are funny, but experiencing it isn't; not for me or anyone else. Well, the doctor said that women who suffer from extreme PMS symptoms like I do, also tend to get a worse dose of hormone crappiness in the first trimester of their pregnancy." She smiled apologetically "Apparently my hormones were completely out of whack, which is why I've been acting like Cruela De Vil."

Clark scratched his ear thoughtfully "Was he able to give you something to help?"

"Yeah, he also gave me a list of some prenatal vitamins and minerals to take which is for the baby and to help me, which I've already bought and started taking. Then he gave me a list of particular foods which I have to start eating as well. However, as he said, just knowing what's going on should help. So with the tablets to help balance out my hormones, along with the vitamins and the change in my diet working together, it should do the rest of the job." She shrugged minutely "I'm sorry Clark..."

"Aren't you happy about it?"

"I mean that I'm sorry for being so awful to you and..."

He pressed a finger against her lips "Lo you couldn't help it so don't apologise. I'm just glad you went to see a doctor, before I resorted to carrying you to one."

"Were you thinking about carrying me to a doctor, or to a priest for an exorcism?" She asked with a small laugh.

"The doctor was my first choice, but I hadn't ruled the priest out as a possibility." He joked in return.

"Well I knew that I needed to do something before I drove you away, or into another woman's arms." She smiled weakly.

He shook his head slowly "Neither of those was ever a possibility Lo, I'm just sorry that I didn't make you go to a doctor sooner."

"You were probably too scared to say anything in case I bit your head off." She returned with a small embarrassed laugh.

"A little, but I was more scared of saying anything in case you told me that you'd mistaken your heart again and wanted out." He replied feeling discomfited in turn.

"That was never a possibility." She returned firmly borrowing his words.

His smile bloomed, and taking both her hands in his and squeezed gently "Are you happy about the baby Lo?"

"I am, but I'd pretty much accepted that we couldn't so finding out I was kind of took me aback, and I thought you'd be happy about it, but given how I've been acting, and remembering that only a few months ago we were saying how lucky we were not to be tied down with kids, I wasn't sure, and now I'm 41 and I'm going to be 42 by the time the baby's born...." Her words ran together in one long sentence, and letting out a deep breath she pressed her forehead to his and closed her eyes, but they flew open a moment later at his voice.

"Who cares how old you are, you're still the sexiest thing on two legs, and we only talked like that because we didn't think we could have kids. Your temperament was frustrating but I still loved you Lo, and now that I know what caused it, it doesn't even matter." His words likewise ran together. Taking a deep breath and unable to hold back any longer, he gathered her close and hugged her carefully; rocking from side to side "We're going to have a baby Lo, a baby."

"I know; it truly didn't matter if we couldn't but knowing we are...." Catching onto his enthusiasm, she laughed in sheer happiness "You think we'll be good parents?"

"Are you kidding, we'll be the best." Sitting back he cupped her face and pressed his lips to hers for a quick hard kiss "As long as we had each other that was enough for me, it was everything; but now Lo....now we don't have to lavish all this extra love we have on Fred, he'll have to share it with our baby."

She giggled softly when the dog sat up at his name and ruffed softly. Reaching down she hugged the mutt then turned back to her husband "He hates sharing."

"Yeah, but it didn't take him long to adore me." He smirked readily and ruffled the dogs head when the animal jumped up to sit beside him on the couch "I'm sure you'll open your heart for our son or daughter; right boy?"

Fred cocked his head, and woofed. When their attention wavered from him, he let out a loud mournful whine, and happily received their pats of apology. Once he'd had enough, he scootched down on the couch to get comfortable, yawned and closed his eyes.

"Now that he's happy, let's talk about me." Clark chuckled, and enjoyed the way she gurgled in reply. Scooping Lois up, he planted her on his lap, placed his palm on her tummy, and looked into her eyes "So since you still love me and all, does this mean you'll be interested in having sex again?"

Lois burst out laughing "That's what you're concerned about?"

"Well the fact that you seemed to be losing interest in me sexually was a major worry y'know?" He smiled then slid his lips to her ear "All teasing aside baby; that scared me as much as everything else."

She hugged him tight then drew back "I've been feeling tired and basically crappy so wasn't in the mood which I'm told is normal in the first trimester as well. But never fear, after coming back from the doctor I spent most of the day looking up stuff on the internet to do with pregnancy, so I've got some great ideas on how to encourage sexual desire even when I don't feel like it." She grinned mischievously "That's not to say you get off scott free. Some of the best advice had to do with touching, and massage, creating the right atmosphere etc."

"I'll be happy to do anything that helps." Clark quickly offered.

Her smiled widened appreciatively "Well, you don't have to do anything tonight..."

"You don't want to?" His face fell in disappointment.

"I want to." He beamed and leaning forward, Lois pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth "Don't ever worry that I'm going to lose interest in you sexually hon. Even when I felt like crap I wanted to, I just didn't have either the mental or physical energy to see it through; all I could think about was getting it over with."

"That's not very flattering." He reproved lightly.

"Not normally no, but these circumstances aren't exactly typical." She reminded him and slipped a hand under his t-shirt to stroke his chest "I promise that one part of me really did want to, unfortunately the bigger part felt that cleaning the grout from the shower tile would be less taxing."

She let out a peal of laughter when his face contorted "You thought of cleaning the shower while we were having sex?"

"No..." At the direct look in his eyes, she shrugged apologetically "Kinda."

"But you never have before this right?"

"Never! Usually all I think about is you." She confirmed steadily. Leaning down she whispered "I think about how hot you make me feel, how badly I want you; your hands on me, your mouth, having you plastered against me, how I never ever want you to stop..." She swiped her tongue along her bottom lip, and sent him a seductive look from under her lashes.

Clark's lips stretched in a mile wide grin "Ok, I can live with that." His hand slipped under the hem of her skirt to sit warmly on her thigh "But how do you feel about sex now?"

"Right now I feel like it, but everything I've read said there will be times, especially in the first trimester when I just won't want to; even if I try to put myself in the mood." She admitted truthfully.

"Tell me when you don't want to babe. I'd prefer to know rather than wondering if you're just doing it to make me happy, but really wishing it was over with; or even worse, thinking about cleaning the toilet."

She let out a snort of laughter "I don't even clean the house; Jean does."

"I know, and that just makes it all so much worse." He grimaced feelingly.

"I promise to tell you from now on." She replied soberly.

"Thank you..." He paused and cocked his head "Is it safe for the baby Lo?"

"Yes." She assured him.

"Good because I already love our baby and I don't want to poke him or her by accident, but since I'm crazy about my wife and find it hard to keep my hands off her; this is vital information." Rubbing her tummy lightly, he looked down then up again and grinned "Tell me everything the doctor said."

Smacking a kiss on his cheek, she hooked her arm around his shoulders and with a grin told him everything.

_***_

_Next Day – Watchtower_

"Hey Clark..." Bruce paused and cocked his head "My god, you're smile is brighter than the suns, what's going on?"

Noting that he was the centre of attention, Clark felt his smile grow even larger "Lois and I are pregnant."

The men rushed forward, congratulations, handshakes, hugs and backslapping ensued. Bart zipped to the fridge, grabbed some beers and tossed them all around "Sorry man we don't keep champagne around here."

"This is fine, thanks." Stepping over to the couch, Clark took a seat, popped open the top and sipped. Flashing a smile at his friends, he repeated once again "I'm going to be a dad."

Likewise making themselves comfortable in the seating area, the men all toasted him and then the teasing started.

"So it's taken you all these years just to figure out how to do it huh?" Bart asked tongue in cheek.

"Oh leave him alone."

"Thanks Ollie."

"No problem, I'm sure you figured out how we human's do it, right after watching an instructional video with your father at the fortress, right buddy?" Oliver grinned hugely.

The men sniggered; Clark bit the inside of his cheek to keep the grin hidden and replied snottily "Wrong! My dear old pop didn't help me out, I ordered a DVD on line, and took notes while watching it carefully."

"You do realise that DVD's that arrive in the mail wrapped up in brown paper aren't actually instructional videos, so much as a porno one's right?" Bruce asked conversationally.

"Damn! And I was wondering what I was supposed to learn from the guy yelling out, 'who's the boss, who's the boss,' while they were going at it." He replied deadpan, causing the men to scream with laughter.

"Maybe I could borrow that instructional video."

"Does your wife think you need instructions too Victor?"

"Au contraire; Fiona says that 'I'm the man'." He sat up proudly and puffed out his chest.

"Yeah, he's just a pervert." AC called out then smiled charmingly "I'll borrow it after him."

The men laughed once again and unable to keep the smile from his face Clark just beamed "Anyway it didn't take me all this time to figure out how to do it, I just believe that practice makes perfect, so made sure that Lo and I practiced every chance we got."

"Did you ask her who the boss was?" Oliver asked with snicker.

Clark casually reached out and smacked his friend lightly in the head "I didn't need to, she normally calls that out."

After their next round of laughter had calmed down, Bart tilted his head inquisitively "How's Lois doing?"

"She was a little shell shocked at first because we've long since accepted that we couldn't have kids, so finding out she was pregnant kind of threw her off stride, but now she's good." He shook his head amazed "She was worried how I'd take it and I was worried something was wrong because she's been moody lately, and now it's like...I can't describe how happy I feel."

"How long did the two of you try before giving up?"

"We never actually tried, but about 6 months after we were married we decided to stop using birth control and let nature take its course. When nothing happened we just figured it wasn't in the cards and that was that." Clark smilingly shrugged.

"And now you know it was in the cards, it just took a little while." AC smiled and slapped his friend on the back.

"Yeah; Lo says my alien sperm probably figured that since I wasn't going to give up getting it on with a human woman, that it waved the white flag in surrender and just gave in." He informed them with a smirk.

"That's as good an explanation as any." Oliver chuckled in appreciation.

He nodded and didn't bother trying to suppress the smile from beaming across his face.

"Have you told the parents?"

"Yep, we called them last night. My mom started crying, and Lo's dad got all misty eyed then started talking about the military." He laughed in remembrance at how happy his mom was when she found out what the problem had been "Before putting the phone down mom pretty much demanded that I pick her up and bring her to the house this morning, and Chloe drove straight over when we called her a little while ago. So right now the three women are celebrating by sitting around and eating cake, while talking about everything baby."

"So are we but we're celebrating the manly way; with beer." Bruce put in lifting his can high.

"True and I think we got the better end of the deal." Clark put in cheerfully, and the men likewise lifted their drinks, except for one.

"What kind of cake are they having?" Bart asked curiously.

"What does it matter, we've got beer." Bruce reminded him pointedly.

Shaking off visions of cake that he was missing out on, Bart sipped his beverage and decided they were right.

Clark rolled his eyes theatrically but the smile of joy couldn't be suppressed "Thank god Lo's friend Abra moved to Denver last year, and none of her other girlfriends live in Metropolis because each one screeched to high heaven when she called to give them the news. If we were still living in Seattle I can only imagine what the house would be like right now with all those women converging on it en masse, and that includes my mom and Chlo."

Grinning at their friend's fake aura of terror, AC asked with a polite smirk "So did you run here to give us the news, or to get away from the women in your house?"

"Both, I would have told you guys in any case, but having the women at my place gave me the impetus to do it sooner rather than later." The men smiled and lifted their drinks once again, this time unity and understanding. "I told Lo that I was going to stop in at the Watchtower to check if my help was needed anywhere, but since she, mom and Chloe just laughed then pointed out that I'd have heard already if I was needed, I knew they didn't believe me, but who cares." Clark gave a small moue but his eyes smiled "I love all of them, but I so did not want to be stuck there listening to them giggling like school girls, when I could be here celebrating with my friends in the manly way. Y'know with beer, pretzels..."

"Talk of porno movies." Oliver jumped in with a smirk.

"Exactly." Clark nodded firmly.

Sitting forward eagerly Bart was unable to contain his curiosity "We'll get back to the porno in a minute, but for now can you tell if you can hear the baby's heart beating?"

He shook his head slowly in regret "At the moment I can't really distinguish it from Lois' and believe me I've tried. I looked on the internet, and bought some books but they said the baby's heartbeat is twice as fast as the mothers, and sometimes people get it confused with background noise, so I figure that super-hearing or not, I have to wait for the baby to develop a little more before I'll be able to hear it distinctly." He looked at his friends and admitted "You have no idea how tempted I am to use my x-ray vision to take a peek, but I don't want to do anything that could harm the baby, so resist."

"It's probably best if you keep resisting Clark."

"I will Ollie don't worry."

"How far along is she?"

"10 weeks; it's only early days yet and I'm a combination of thrilled to bits and scared stiff." He blew out a soft breath and the smile faded from his face "I'm excited that we're having a baby, but Lo's not 20 or even 30 something anymore, so I'm also resisting the urge to wrap her up in cotton wool to keep her safe."

"She'll be ok Clark." Bruce put in quietly "A lot of women in their forties have babies without any problems, and Lois will too."

"I know but the thought of anything happening to her scares the crap out of me. After she went to sleep last night, I spent hours on the internet looking up everything to do with pregnancy. How she's going to feel in the different trimesters, how the changes in her body might affect her, if being pregnant is different for women in their forties as opposed to those who are younger, and if so what to do. Then I read hundreds of questions from both women and men who'd either had a baby, or were pregnant now and what their partners expected from them or asking advice on what they should do etc. That was a real eye opener, and I'm glad I did it." He raked a hand through his hair, and let out a small laughing sigh "I think I know more about pregnancy now than most doctors do."

"Well knowing what to expect is better than being blindsided; and if reading all that helps you to worry less than it's worth it." Bart put in patting his friend on the shoulder.

Clark nodded and smiled "Yeah, Lo says that even way back when, the one thing she always knew I excelled at was worrying. But knowledge combats fear, and this time she couldn't blame me since she'd spent the day frantically searching the internet herself."

"I did the same when Dina was pregnant." Oliver smiled readily.

"Me too." AC and Victor lifted their hands and waved about their own experiences.

"Anyway, I feel much more confident now that I know what to expect. I mean, I understand that every woman is different but I have a good idea, and that's better than ignorance." He paused and shrugged "But it doesn't stop me from wanting to keep Lo and now my child safe at all times."

"Of course not, that's what love does to you. It opens your heart to another, and puts chains on it for the same reason. It's the most wonderful and scary emotion in the world." AC replied with a quiet smile.

"Yeah."

Nodding in agreement, the men continued to sip their drinks and the conversation continued as they began talking about their girlfriends, and wives, and those who now had children happily shared their own terrified and thrilling experiences of being an expectant father.


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

_4 weeks later_

Lois just sat there looking at the doctor as if he was insane; Clark meanwhile couldn't keep the smile from beaming across his face. At the sound of her voice, he flicked his eyes to the side and tried to look solemn.

"Doctor, look at my husband and me..." When the man stared at her blankly, she urged "...go on, take a good long look at us." At the bemused expression on his face, she rolled her eyes and patiently explained "As you can see, Clark is not a skinny little prawn, he's a big man who has muscles on top of muscles. As for me, well you've no doubt noticed that I'm already showing, and hey; I'm only just 14 weeks pregnant. And now you're telling me that I don't have one, but two babies growing inside who aren't even close to being cooked, so I'm more than likely going to be the size of a house by the time they're done. Well that's just _impossible_…" She turned to her husband and gestured with her head to the doctor "Clark, tell him."

He shifted uncomfortably and cleared his throat "Tell him what Lo?"

She smacked his arm and pointed "Tell him that he's obviously made a mistake. I don't have room in my belly for two babies who are probably going to be as big as you someday; tell him."

Ignoring the red that he had suffused his cheeks, he turned to the doctor and sent him a weak smile hoping the man understood why he was questioning his professional judgement "Well doctor, I…ah…my wife…." He broke off, blew out a deep breath and turned to her "Lo um….."

"Tell him!" She cut him off adamantly.

"Right…..doctor are you absolutely sure?" He asked unable to keep the hope from his voice.

The man looked at him in understanding and nodded "Unless your baby has two heads, you're having twins; congratulations."

"CONGRATULATIONS!!!" Lois shrieked "Unless I'm just retaining a whole lot of water already, and these babies don't get any bigger than the size of a grape, I'm going be pushing out two little things, which will feel like two huge things, compared to the size of the thing they have to come out of and....and..."

Clark slipped his arm around her shoulders and squeezed "It'll be alright Lo."

She smacked his arm "You had all the fun, and I have to do all the work and all you can say is; it's gonna be alright Lo!"

"You had fun too remember?" At her glare, he cleared his throat and patted her tummy "I love you baby."

"Which baby are you saying that too exactly?" She asked suspiciously.

"You." He smiled and pecked her cheek.

"I love you too, and now if you'll both excuse me I have to go to the bathroom again." Sighing she pushed up to her feet "Is it really necessary for me to drink all that water just for an ultrasound?"

"For an abdominal scan like we did today, I'm afraid it is Mrs Kent." Doctor Chua smiled apologetically, and soon found it cut absolutely no ice with Lois whatsoever.

"Humph; you'd think in this day and age they'd come up with something better. It's positively barbaric making a pregnant woman drink so much water, when it already feels like she has a load sitting right on her bladder. I bet all the money for research into pregnancy has gone into something really important; like finding out why cat's purr or something similar." She stepped towards the door in what could only be called a flounce, but stopped to turn back and address the doctor "I certainly hope that when I'm in labour I get drugs. I don't want to be offered a stick to bite on because all the money for medication has been given to the kitty litter association." Turning to her husband she addressed him next "I think you should look into that Clark."

"Into kitty litter Lo?" Clark asked confused.

"No; into where all the research money for medical science has gone to of course. If it is being spent on cats then write an article exposing it." She replied patiently.

He nodded obediently and once the door closed behind her, let out the huge smile that he'd been suppressing.

"You're wife's an interesting lady Mr Kent."

"Yeah she's great huh?" He smiled jovially.

"Mmmm."

"Lo figured that she must have gotten the date of conception wrong since she was already showing, and I just figured that a pregnant woman equals poking out belly." Clark chuckled in delight.

Doctor Chua smiled in return "Well learning your having twins can be a bit of a surprise, but give her a couple of days to get used to the idea and she'll be fine. I guess we men do get the easy part, huh?"

"Yeah. Thanks doc, I'll try not to crow out loud about it until Lo's over the shock." He held out his hand, and with a hearty smile Doctor Chua gave it a firm shake, and escorted him out of the office.

***

_Later that night_

Since Lois had stopped muttering and shooting him the death glare several hours before, Clark figured it was safe to crawl into bed beside his love, and maybe feel her out regarding their latest news "How are you feeling Lo?"

She patted his hand and nodded "I feel good."

"And ah...how do you feel about..." He coughed and smiled sweetly "About what the doctor told us this morning?"

She tossed down her magazine, sat forward to fluff up the pillow and shook her head "You mean our news about the twins?" At his nod, she threw out her hands and rolled her eyes "Gees Clark what happened to not being sure if you could have kids at all?"

He grinned and smoothed his hand over her nightie enjoying the feeling of the small bump that was no doubt going to get a whole lot bigger in the coming months "Obviously I was wrong."

"Obviously!" She returned dryly "Anyway, I suppose it's just as well that we hadn't started fixing the room next door into a nursery. But I think I'll call the person I have in mind tomorrow and ask them to come over so we can start planning, what'd you think?"

"I was hoping we could do it ourselves." He replied disappointed.

"I'm all for that." Lois grinned cheerfully "The person I was thinking of getting goes by the name of Martha Kent. Your mom already offered to help out, and I know she has good taste. And even though she didn't start from scratch with you, she'll still be able to advise us on what we do and don't need, which will stop us from buying just anything because the shop girls tell us too. Most importantly, your mom will happily give us ideas, but she'll also listen to what we want instead of taking over unlike some professional decorators, so...." She trailed off at the smile that stretched across his face.

He leant forward and pecked her lips with his "That's a great idea Lo, and it'll give her the chance to feel more involved as well."

"Yeah, if she wants to come stay every other weekend that's fine, or if she wants to come every day, or just every second day whatever, you can pick her up and drop her off before going onto work." She chewed her lip thoughtfully "But I don't want her to feel like she has to give up her own social life to come here either."

"Just let her know that you're taking her up on her offer and let mom decide how often she wants to be here."

Lois smiled sheepishly "I already said yes, but told her that we wouldn't start planning anything until I was past the first trimester just in case."

"Which we are now."

"Just barely, but yes we are so I'll call her tomorrow and we can start getting this show on the road." She paused before ruminating out loud "I wonder what everyone will say when they find out we're having twins."

Clark grinned hugely in reply "The guys will no doubt give me a hard time again, mom and Chloe will more than likely say exactly what you did, about me not being sure if I could have kids at all, and your dad will crow thinking he's going to have two grandkids in the military some day."

Lois snorted out a laugh "Daddy and the military; I swear he's going to buy our babies tiny little army boots when they're born."

He laughed then asked seriously "Do you think he really will try and influence them?"

"Nope, daddy's career military, but he's not interested in pushing people into joining the armed forces if they have no desire to be in them." She tilted her head and tacked on "Mind you if our kids want to join up when they're old enough to make that decision, he might try and steer them towards the army, but whichever branch they're interested in, he'll make sure they know both the good and the bad, so they won't think it's just an easy ride with a glamorous uniform."

"Good." Clark nodded in agreement "If our kids want to join that's fine by me, as long as they realise it's not an easy job." He patted her tummy "But that's still a long way away, so for now Mrs Kent I have a more pertinent question for you...." At the curiosity on her face, he asked "When they can tell us the sex of the babies, do you want to know?"

"Yep, I don't like surprises in any form, I much prefer to know what's coming, but if you don't want to know I'll keep it to myself."

"Nope, I want to know too." He paused for a beat then asked "Should we tell everyone when we know or keep it a secret?"

Lois shrugged carelessly "I don't get what the big deal is about keeping it a secret. The babies can only be a choice of two sexes, so who cares if everyone knows beforehand. I say we tell them."

"I agree." He kissed the side of her head.

"And just to be fair, I think if we have two girls or two boys we name one each, but if we have one girl and one boy, then I'll pick the girls name and you pick the boys; what'd you think?" She posed thoughtfully.

"Agreed, and I already have a name picked out that I've always wanted to call my son; y'know if I had one." Clark smiled delighted. At the curiosity on her face, he revealed solemnly "Butch."

"Butch…" Lois repeated dumbfounded, and at his vigorous nod, she asked clearly "You want to name our son Butch Kent."

At the tone in her voice, he figured she wasn't thrilled with his choice "You don't like it?" He asked disappointed.

"Um…No!" Lois replied firmly "We are not calling any son of ours Butch."

"But it sounds manly, mean, tough." He threw out his hand in appeal.

"It sounds dumb." She laughed.

"And I suppose you're also going to shoot down the names Thor, Cannon and Powers." He asked sulkily.

"You suppose right."

"So what names do you like then?" He asked challengingly.

"Well there's Marion…" She stated hesitantly

Clark pursed his lips and grudgingly conceded "Marion's not a bad name for a girl I suppose."

"I meant for our son."

"NO!" He stated flatly.

"But…"

"NO!"

"John Wayne's real name was Marion."

"Then call him John, but I'm not having any son of mine called Marion."

She pouted for a moment then let out a huge sigh "Deal."

Shaking off his own disappointment, he smiled "Twins Lo, we're having twins."

"Actually I'll be having them, you'll just be standing around saying, 'breathe Lo, push Lo etc, etc, etc." She tapped her chin and swept her eyes up and down his frame "Although come to think of it, even though you looked human by the time you reached Earth, when you were born you might have been nothing more than a blob with tentacles."

He looked at her drolly "Very funny."

"Who's laughing?" She asked politely holding back the snigger.

"Well I do have at least one pretty impressive tentacle, you've told me so, and with the news the doctor gave us today, he unwittingly confirmed your expert analysis." He smirked readily making her chortle out loud.

When her mirth calmed, she clasped his hand and looked at him seriously "Well they'll be our blobs with tentacles so I'll love them just the same. However, I'm telling you right now, if either of our babies have super-suck, I'm not breast feeding them."

Laughing in agreement, he bent and took her smiling lips with his.

***

_Almost four months later _

"Does it hurt Lo?" Clark asked softly and at her slight headshake he kept the pressure of his finger light, running it over and around the nipple, back and forth until it became distended then leant down and swabbed his tongue over it carefully. The last time he'd touched her breasts while they were making love, Lois had all but shrieked giving him a heart attack in the process. Taking his time, he took the bud into his mouth and sucked very gently before quickly lifting his head "Was that too hard baby?"

"No that was nice." She giggled softly "I kind of scared you the last time, huh?'

"Mmm." Bending down he took the bud into his mouth again, while his hand cupped and caressed her other breast with the gentlest of strokes.

He took his time, building her desire by degrees and when they were both ready, moved to lie on his back as she'd softly requested. They'd tried various ways over the past few months, but when Lois' girth expanded, he'd left the decision of which position would be the most comfortable in her hands. Frankly he was just happy that she still wanted sex at all. It wasn't as frequent, nor as spontaneous as they used to indulge in, but he was grateful for it nonetheless.

He smiled at his wife encouragingly; she smiled back gingerly and moved to straddle him, but ended by sighing in disappointment when the task seemed insurmountable.

"Do you want us to lie on our sides' baby?" When she shook her head, he picked up her hand and brought it to his lips "Then let me help you, ok Lo?"

"Ok."

Placing his hands on her waist, Clark picked Lois up then brought her back down; watching her carefully for any sign of discomfort as his penis slowly and gently pushed into her passage. Once settled, his eyes closed in bliss, but flew open a moment later at the soft apologetic voice above him.

"I'm kind of big and not very graceful anymore, huh?" She smiled diffidently.

Hearing the tone, and knowing exactly what she wasn't saying; he quickly sat up, wrapped his arms around her ample girth, and claimed her lips in a deep long kiss. When their mouths broke apart, he cupped her face in his hands and smiled into her eyes "You still turn me on like a house afire Lois, and I find the huge bump you're sporting these day's makes our sex life just as exciting as what we had before; just in a different way."

"Really?"

"Really."

Seeing the sincerity shining in his eyes, hearing it in his voice, she smiled in genuine warmth.

"You might not be able as physically agile as you used to be babe, but you're still so damn sexy that it should be illegal. Quite frankly, there's not one thing I don't find alluring about you...." He leant back, looked down and his grin became huge "...especially these beauties."

She giggled, looked down then back up again and shook her head "I wasn't exactly small before."

"No, but now you're like Dolly Parton and oh my; aren't I the lucky husband." Smoothing his hands down her back to massage softly, he looked down again and let out a soft wolf whistle smiling at her responding gurgle.

Lying down again, he raised his knees as a buffer for both safety and to give Lois something to rest on should she need it, and kept his hands on her waist for balance, but otherwise let her set the pace and depth she wanted. Although their athletics in the bedroom had become much tamer, making love with his wife was still one of his greatest pleasures.

Gripping onto his forearms for balance, she began to move, up and down with shallow penetrations, then a little deeper, their bodies rocking together slowly, eyes drowsily smiling into each other's when a kick, followed by a second a moment later, changed the expression in their eyes from dreamy pleasure to instant humour. They'd gotten used to that as well. Lois had laughingly told him once that his sons were telling him to bugger off, he'd replied they were just saying hello to their pop. Patting her tummy gently, Clark grinned and spoke sternly to the bump "Sorry boys but this is daddy's time with your mom, and as I've told you before I'm never giving it up, so you might as well get used to it."

Lois grinned when the babies kicked as if in acknowledgment, before quieting down once again, then looked at her husband ruefully "I'm kind of tired, do you mind?"

"Do you want to stop?"

"No, I want you to take over."

Nodding his head against the pillow, he happily obliged.

Afterwards, while Lois pulled on a fresh loose nightdress, Clark fluffed up their pillows, placing them just so against the headboard then made himself comfortable. Minutes later, she re-joined him, and holding out his arms for balance, he brought her to rest in the v of his legs with her back resting against his chest.

When Lois reached for the coco butter on the nightstand, she wasn't surprised to find her husband already had it in his hands and was busy pouring out a generous portion into his palm. Resting one hand on his leg for balance, she tugged the nightdress from under her bottom, tucked it under her breasts and sighed lightly in relief when Clark began to smooth the ointment over her belly "Better."

"Mmmm, just a little harder please." She wiggled in contentment when his fingers exerted a touch more friction relieving the itchiness of her skin "Ohhhh; that feels nice."

Leaning down, he pressed his lips to her ear and blew softly "I love you sweetheart."

Tilting her head to the side, she buried her face in the side of his neck "I love you."

When he finished smoothing and rubbing in the lotion in; his hands continued to stroke over her tummy gently and soothingly "Lo."

"Hmmm."

Pressing his lips to her jaw, he continued softly "I know your back and legs give you hell babe, and it's not so easy for you to manoeuvre these days, so whenever you don't want us to make love, I want you to tell me ok?"

"Uh huh."

He frowned and griped good natured "You don't have to agree so readily y'know." When she chortled sleepily, he continued in a hushed voice "I'll probably groan loudly in disappointment, I may even go for a zip or two around the world, but don't let that influence your decision in any way."

"I won't; love you." Yawning hugely, she snuggled in deeper and drifted off to sleep.

Moving her carefully to the supine position so not to wake her up, he tugged down her nightdress, grabbed the pregnancy pillow, placed it in position, and smiled when Lois automatically curled around it. Once she was settled, he spooned around her, sat his hand quietly on her belly and pressed his face into her hair. He loved tending to her; massaging her legs and back when they were painful, rubbing cocoa butter onto her tummy to help alleviate the itchiness of her skin, tying her shoes, helping her to dress on occasion; giving her a hand to get up from the couch; he loved doing it all.

Shaking his head slightly, Clark still found it hard to understand how after researching pregnancy so meticulously the night Lois told him she was expecting, he'd still managed to almost get it wrong. Since he thought she looked beautiful pregnant, it had never occurred to him that she could have anxieties about her looks.

Lois had always been such a self assured person, even as a teenager. But when her stomach ballooned almost overnight from being a mid-sized lump, to an unmistakeably huge full on globe, it had brought out insecurities in her that he hadn't expected.

In the whole time they'd been together, she had never once worried that his interest in her would wane, had never been jealous of groupies, and hadn't been concerned or anxious that he'd return any interest thrown in his direction as either Clark or Superman. However, when her girth expanded so suddenly, she became self conscious of him seeing her naked and either changed in the bathroom, or waited for him to leave the bedroom. She also didn't want to make love, took to wearing long, cover everything nighties, and became overly cheerful when he was around.

Cheerful was fine, he was used to her being happy, smiling and loving, but her manner had become almost manically animated. There was no more sarcasm, no more opposing opinions to his, and her almost desperate appeals for them to go out at night and live it up, even though she was clearly tired was not only suspect in itself, but even more so since they weren't the free-wheeling night-time party animal types. Sure her suggestions of going to the movies, the theatre, or out for a late supper etc wasn't exactly bar hopping, but as she was usually yawning her head off while making the suggestions, he'd had to make up excuses why it wasn't possible without upsetting her in turn.

However, when she dropped by the Planet unexpectedly too see him, and in turn found the slim beautiful Barbara McNee giving him the come on, the partly envious, mostly furious look on his wife's face had caught him by surprise.

Barbara had joined the Planet six months prior, and almost from their first introduction had tried countless ways and means to engage his interest. At first he'd told her thanks but no, he was happily married. When she kept persisting he either flashed his wedding ring under her nose, or pointedly picked up the photo of Lois from his desk and all but waved it in her face. When that failed he told her nicely to bugger off, but in the end decided to just ignore her in the hopes that she'd eventually grow tired and leave him alone. It hadn't worked. The fact that he was uninterested and unavailable seemed to be an even bigger green light to the woman, who seemed infinitely secure in her appeal of winning any man for her own.

As he had nothing to hide, nor any intention of letting some unimportant women ever becoming a bone of contention between them; he'd told Lois about each incident. She'd rolled her eyes at his description of Barbara's attempts, had laughed at the way he'd shot the woman down, and although he'd laughed with her, he'd felt grateful that his wife trusted him enough to never point out that it had been going on for months, nor asked if he'd done anything to encourage her.

Pressing his face into her hair, he smiled and brought back the memory of when Lois unexpectedly popped into the newsroom several weeks ago to ask him out for lunch, only to catch Barbara in one of her many attempts in trying to flirt with him.

He'd been busy ignoring the woman so didn't realise anything was wrong at first, but when the newsroom grew silent; he looked up and saw his wife marching as purposefully as she could in their direction with blood in her eye. He'd tried to keep the peace, had quickly stepped around his desk, hurriedly made introductions, but had barely finished when Lois reached up, grabbed Barbara's hair and tugged hard, causing the woman to screech loudly in dismay.

His eyes swept around the newsroom to see Perry standing at the doorway to his office with his brows raised high, Chloe and Jimmy grinning in delight, his female co-workers smiling fiendishly, and the men eagerly anticipating the coming bitch fight. Every eye was trained on his desk, every ear flapping in their direction. People didn't even bother pretending they weren't looking; in fact those who had been sitting had gotten to their feet. Turning back to the spectacle of his wife holding Barbara captive, he cleared his throat hesitantly "Um babe, is this really nec...."

"Shut up!" She gritted out.

He decided right then to shut up.

Lois didn't bother lowering her voice, but spoke distinctly ensuring there could be no misunderstandings "Clark has told me about every one of your pathetic efforts to get him into bed, and although he's tried to be a gentleman in rebuffing you, apparently you just don't understand the word no. Now, I'm not patient like my husband, so I suggest you listen to me carefully, because I'm not going to repeat myself; clear!" Barbara whimpered and taking that for assent, Lois continued "Clark is not interested in you, he doesn't want you. He will never grace the bed of some man hungry skank who's no doubt riddled with disease. Now keep your eyeballs in your head and off my husband, or I'll pop them out and feed them to our dog; CAPICHE!!"

Lois tugged once more, Barbara gurgled out "Yes" and his wife let go.

Everyone watched as Barbara scuttled towards the lift, jabbed at the button repeatedly and threw herself inside when the doors opened. However, the moment they slid closed, the newsroom collapsed with laughter.

He'd smiled hugely in delight, as smugness filled his heart with the realisation that Lois was jealous of him even after years of being together, but when she remarked softly that she wouldn't blame him for finding Barbara attractive; pointing out the woman was beautiful, and didn't look like a baby elephant, his smile faded. That was when it all clicked and he felt like smacking himself for being so slow. When two huge tears swelled up and rolled down her cheeks, he quickly stepped around his desk and ignoring the cat calls and hoots in their direction, yelled out to Perry that he was taking his wife home and led her to the lifts. Once on the roof, he did a quick scan, spun into the suit and flew them home sighing silently in relief at finding Jean must have taken Fred for a walk since neither were there.

He'd been flabbergasted that Lois could ever think he wouldn't find her attractive, flummoxed that she'd think he'd prefer another woman's attention, and dumbfounded to learn she was acting unlike herself, and more like a party barbie doll in the hopes he wouldn't lose interest in her, just because she'd ballooned so suddenly.

He carried her through the house into the bedroom put her down and cupped her face sweeping his thumbs under her eyes "What you said to Barbara was spot on and I feel smugly proud that you did it, but what you said to me was wrong. The only woman I desire is you Lo, and the only bed I want to be in is the one that you occupy. Baby elephant or not you're beautiful in my eyes, and I still want you. I don't believe that will change even after I'm dead and cold in my grave."

She shook her head and sniffed "I look big and ugly."

"No you don't." He replied firmly.

"You haven't seen..."

"Yes I have..." He cut in quietly "Don't forget that I have x-ray vision Lo. When I'm at home and you're in the shower, I listen out and periodically keep an eye on you because I need to ensure that you're alright."

Her eyes lifted to his, her mouth quivered "Then you know."

He smiled and bent to press his lips to hers "Yes, I know that your size almost doubled overnight a couple of weeks ago, and has since increased again, and yes I know what you look like naked. But sweetheart let me tell you something, seeing you big with my babies, knowing that I'm the one responsible for it, turns me on like you wouldn't believe."

Lois swiped a hand under her nose, and a tiny smiled trembled on her lips "Really?"

"Uh huh." Reaching out, he grabbed some tissues and handed them over.

After she'd dried her eyes and blew her nose, he began to kiss and touch her, letting her know that he'd spoken no less than the truth. When she tried to demur he'd overridden her protests, whispering softly, sweeping his hands over her gently until all shyness at her appearance was gone, swept away by desire.

Afterwards, he turned them on their sides to face each other, and stroked her cheek gently "I don't want you to hide yourself from me anymore Lo."

She quickly pressed a hand to her mouth and yawned "I'm going to get bigger and..."

"Yes you will, and you have absolutely nothing to be ashamed about. You body is already voluminously ripe Lo, and it's only going to become more so as time goes on. I love it, just as much as I loved it when you were slim; so no more hiding; ok?"

"Ok." Smiling softly, she leant forward and pressed her lips to his before yawning hugely again.

Smiling into her eyes, he continued sternly "And just to be clear, I take pleasure in just kicking back at home and relaxing with my wife. So I also don't want to hear any more crazy suggestions about us going out at night and painting the town red, ok?"

She giggled sleepily "Ok."

"Now how about you have a nap, and I'll go back to work and I'll see you when I get home." Her eyes closed but she nodded, and pressing his lips to her jaw he whispered "I love you baby."

Her lips curved into a smile, and once assured that she was asleep, he had a quick shower, changed and flew back to work.

Coming back to the present Clark lifted up slightly and pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth. Lois still had moments of insecurity, but they didn't last for long and every time they occurred he was more than willing to do anything to ensure that she once again knew just how much he desired her. His wife was the light in his life, she was the love of his life, and seeing her body big and round with his babies made her so damn beautiful that the thought of not desiring her, or ever wanting another was laughable.

Although he wouldn't have chosen for Lois to feel so unattractively insecure, he was glad that she'd arrived in the newsroom that day. It had ended by serving two purposes; making him realise what was troubling her, and putting Barbara in her place. The woman had given him a wide berth since then, and was now apparently looking for a position at another newspaper; he wouldn't be sorry to see her go.

When the babies kicked, he rubbed his hand over her tummy and wondered what it felt like from Lois' position. He could only feel the babies kick and move from the outside by putting his hand on her tummy, but Lois could feel it all happening from inside. Well he couldn't experience that, but he could enjoy remembering the spectacle of his wife showing her claws that day, and drifted off to sleep doing just that.


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

_9 weeks later_

Lois lay back exhausted and wondered how much longer this could go on for. What in hell were those women who wanted natural childbirth thinking? Thank god she hadn't been so ridiculous as to say no to drugs. Hell she'd made sure the nursing staff understood that she wanted all the drugs they felt safe to give her. No doubt she'd be screaming blue murder for them now if she'd said no in the beginning. She felt like she'd been in labour forever, her throat was parched, and although the pain wasn't gone completely, it had been blocked to a certain extent.

While Clark gently swabbed her forehead, Lois watched the doctor and nurse carefully. The second they turned away, she grabbed the front of her husband's gown and tugged.

"How are you feeling baby?" He asked solicitously, continuing to wipe a cool cloth over her forehead.

"Oh I feel great, wish I could do this every day for the rest of my life; thanks for asking." She whispered fiercely.

He pursed his lips and nodded.

Keeping her voice low, she quickly began to talk "Listen, this could be the most humanitarian task you'll ever perform as Superman…" Her eyes flicked to ensure the staff hadn't heard, and noting that they weren't paying attention, continued "Make an excuse to get the doctor and nurse out of the room, then quickly come back here, reach inside and use your super-strength to pull these babies out of me."

Clark's eyes widened "Um Lo…."

"They do it with animals." She cut in at the refusal on his face.

"No they don't, they hel..." Giving himself a mental shake to shut it, he smiled "Lo; you're not an animal and..."

"I'll damn well bite you and prove that I can be an animal." She hissed desperately.

"How are you doing Mrs Kent?"

At the doctor's voice, Lois looked up and smiled gamely "I'm doing great doc, but I just wanna tell my husband how much he means to me, so could we have a moment alone please?"

"Well we can't go, far but why don't I and Nurse Smith just step into the corner of the room, that way we're not far when the next contraction hits?"

"Great; thanks." She gritted out and when they turned away, swung back to Clark "Well?"

"Baby, it's not possible."

"But...."

"Sweetheart you know that I'd rather be feeling the pain myself than seeing you go through it but..." He began to explain patiently, only to be cut off by her rude snort.

"Then go and get some kryptonite and we'll both be in pain." She remarked snidely.

He cleared his throat, and pressed his lips to her nose "I love you babe."

She simply snorted again "So I'm guessing you've changed your mind about feeling the pain now too huh?" When the next contraction started, she grabbed onto his hand and squeezed hard "We're going to have a long talk about this later, we're goinooooooh...."

An hour later smiles wreathed their faces as each held a little boy in their arms. Kneeling down to be face level with his wife, Clark leant over and captured her lips in a soft kiss "They're beautiful Lo."

"Yeah." Stroking her finger softly over the baby's cheek, she smiled through tears at her husband "They're so perfect." Tweaking her finger, she waited for him to lean over and whispered "And they're definitely going to take after you."

If possible his smile grew bigger "You think they look like me." He looked from one small face to the other, searching for any sign of resemblance.

Lois chuckled lightly in amusement "You're looking too high up, pull the blanket aside and have another peek."

Clark let out a shout of laughter, and after carefully transferring the baby he was holding to her, so that she was now holding both, he slipped his arm around her shoulders, pressed his cheek against hers, and the two looked at their boys.

***

_30 minutes later_

Clark stepped into the waiting room, saw his mom and Chloe and smiled hugely when both jumped out of their seats and rushed over.

"By the smile I'm guessing the babies are here, and Lois is alright." Martha grinned, wrapping her arms around her son to hug him tight.

"Lo's great, and the babies are beautiful." He pressed a kiss to her check and smiled "Hello grandma."

Martha giggled softly, and when his mom let go, Chloe likewise hugged him tight then stepped back "So did the doctors get it right; they're both boys?"

"Yep, and they're going to be identical." He replied, unable to wipe the smile of his face.

"How'd the labour go?"

"At the time it was bloody awful, Lois was exhausted, and I felt helpless to do anything but cheer her on; which she didn't appreciate after a while. I took her name calling and swearing in stride, but I have to confess to being astounded when she grabbed the first minute we had alone, to basically imply that I should put my super-strength to good use for once by pulling the babies out of her."

Chloe slapped a hand over her mouth but her shoulders shook in betrayal, Martha chortled out loud, and when the three caught each other's eyes, they gave in and laughed uproariously.

Once his mirth calmed down, Clark tilted his head down the corridor "Just excuse me for a minute while I call Sam. By the time I'm done Lois should be back in her room, and the nurses will bring the babies in straight after."

The women nodded, and pulling out his phone he pressed the button for speed dial, heard half a ring, before the other end was picked up "Are they here yet?"

Laughing in sheer joy, he bobbed his head automatically "Yep, and they're just perfect; congratulations grandpa."

Samuel Lane let out a rebel shout, and grasped onto his wife's hand "How's my little Lo?"

"She's good Sam, she's really good."

"And how are you?"

"I'm in awe of your daughter." Swiping a hand down his face, he shook his head dumbfounded "My god, a man really has no idea of the sheer resilience, and fortitude that women have until they watch them struggling to bring a new life into this world."

"I know son, I felt the same way when my daughters were born." Sam smiled gratefully when Alice passed him some tissues. After blowing his nose he repeated in a voice full of wonder "I'm a grandpa."

"You sure are." Clark almost sang "And I'm a dad."

"You sure are." Sam called back.

"I was wondering if you and Alice would like to come and stay with us for a few days, when Lo and the babies come home."

"Thank you son we'd love that, but how about we come in a couple of weeks. That'll give you two kids some time by yourselves with your offspring, and in the meantime you can just send us some photos via email."

"You've got it..." When the nurse popped her head around the corner and smiled, Clark nodded "I have to go Sam, the nurse just indicated that Lo's ready for visitors, would you mind calling Lucy and telling her that she's an aunt?"

"I will, give my love to Lo."

"I will, and I'll have her call you as soon as she feels up to it; bye grandpa."

Chuckling lightly Sam called out congratulations once again and hung up.

After slipping the phone back in his pocket, he turned to smile at the women "He's thrilled to bits." Nodding and smiling hugely in understanding, they followed eagerly when he led the way to Lois' room. Pushing open the door open with a soft whoosh, he waved them in, stepped through and let the door close quietly behind.

The women stepped forward to hug Lois carefully. They chatted for a few minutes, asking how the new mom was feeling, offering congratulations with wide smiles on all faces. A few minutes later, two small cribs were wheeled in and placed beside the bed, causing Martha and Chloe to hop out of their seats, and all to ooh and ahh.

Seeing the longing on their faces, Lois smiled sleepily at the women "You can hold them if you like."

Not waiting for a second invitation and grinning with delight, the two women carefully picked up one baby each, and began to gently rock, while their eyes kept flying back and forth between the two boys.

"You're just so precious aren't you? Yes you are, yes you are?" Martha cooed wagging her head back and forth.

"You're just so cute that I could gobble you right up; yum, yum, yum, yum, yum." Chloe sang softly.

Sitting on the bed beside his wife, Clark lips twitched in amusement. Looking down he saw a smirk on Lois' face, and when their eyes met they shared a silent laugh at the baby babble coming from the women; both of whom had stated quite categorically they would never do anything so humiliating.

Clasping his wife's hand in his, he sighed hugely in contentment, before zeroing in on the tags. After a quick read, he cut in politely on the baby talk "Mom you're holding Michael Samuel Kent, and Chlo you're holding Daniel Jonathan Kent."

"My face is sore from smiling but I can't stop." Martha complained lightly. Looking up she saw the amusement on their faces, felt the flush sweep over her cheeks, and stuck her nose in the air "I know what I said, but that was before I caught sight of these two little angels."

Lifting her eyes from the baby Chloe began "My face is sore too..." However, once she noted the same look directed at her, she trailed off, felt the heat likewise creep up her neck, and sniffed indignantly "They're just too adorable..." Her eyes once again fell on the baby in her arms, flew to the one the older woman was holding and eagerly suggested "Let's switch Martha."

The older woman happily obliged and once again the cooing started.

"How will you be able to tell which one's which?" Chloe asked curiously, trailing her finger lightly down one velvety soft cheek.

"For now we're going to leave the hospital tags on until we find some kind of indicator." Clark shrugged unconcerned.

"We're sure to get them confused at some point, but I've been told we'll be able to distinguish them eventually so not to get uptight about it. We're also going to try and make it easy on everyone else by not dressing them in identical clothes at least." Lois added, then gave one almighty yawn before dropping off to sleep.

Clark nodded agreeably, and bent down to press a kiss against the top of her head.

When the nurse quietly entered the room a few minutes later, and gestured that it was time to leave, the babies were put back in their cribs and the three stepped outside the room quietly.

"I'm so happy for both of you sweetie." Martha pulled him into a hug and held on tight.

"Me too mom." He hugged her back and pressed his cheek to the top of her head "I can't believe how wonderfully my life has turned out. On the day I got my divorce I had no idea what destiny had in store for me down the line. That day I was just so glad to be free, and now it feels almost sacrilegious to be so happy, and yet I have more chains binding me then I've ever had before."

Squeezing tight, she stepped back and cupped his face "You're happy because this time they're the right chains honey, and that makes all the difference in the world."

Smiling in delight, he nodded "Yeah."

***

_Five months later_

Comfortably ensconced in the family room, the Kent's enjoyed a lazy Saturday night at home. Fred was quietly snuffling on the floor, Clark jiggled Daniel lightly, enjoying the soft gurgle that issued forth from his son, and turned his head at the answering burble coming from the side. Michael was lying on Lois' lap, holding up his arms, opening and closing his little hands in delight as she tickled him, causing Clark's smile to widen further.

"I can't believe how much they've changed in just five months."

"I know; I can't believe these two were in my tummy; look at the size of them." She smiled, bending down to press a kiss to Michael's cheek.

"They were smaller then babe." Clark reminded her with a smile.

"They didn't feel small when I was pushing them out." She replied with a small huff of laughter, before leaning over to smack a kiss on Daniel's cheek, enjoying his small coo in return.

Placing Michael on the large foam baby matt, Lois tilted her head and watched as Fred immediately got up, ambled over and flopped down in front of the coffee table. Clark had been right; just as the dog had taken to him almost immediately, he'd likewise become devoted to the boys, and was fiercely protective of their safety. The minute the babies were put down on the floor, Fred was on guard either using his body to block them from accidently rolling into sharp or heavy objects, or just keeping a watchful eye on them.

Getting to her feet, she patted the mutt before stepping over to select a small soft toy from one of the many baskets full they'd managed to accumulate over the past months. When Clark held out a hand in request, she passed the small stuffie to him, grabbed another for herself then knelt on the floor. Holding it out, she was unsurprised and completely charmed when Michael reached out in curiosity to give it a poke before trying to mush it with his little hand, and looking up saw that Daniel was likewise doing the same. If they weren't trying to squeeze something, they were trying to fit it in their mouth; that included their fists, feet and anything else that came to hand.

"I've decided not to go away to gather research for my next book; actually I won't be doing so until the babies are at least three and in pre-school."

Clark looked up in surprise "Lo, I don't want you to give up your career or let it stagnate."

"I'm not going to be doing either, but there are more than enough cases for me to choose from right here in Metropolis. I usually take at least a year to write a book, sometimes longer depending on the case and the research involved, so why not choose one that's close to home." When his mouth opened, she shook her head "I know you can easily drop me off and pick me up from wherever I need to be, but right now that's here. When the boys start pre-school, I'll feel better about going away for the day to research, but I don't want to do it until then."

"Are you sure that's what you want to do baby, as you said I can easily pick you up and drop you off." He reminded her quietly.

"I'm sure, although Karen's wonderful with the boys, and I'm grateful for her help, I don't want to leave it all on her shoulders." She smiled ruefully "In a way being an older mom has its own rewards. A lot of younger women don't have the option of choosing when or if they're ready to go back to work, but I do. We own the house, have more than enough money in the bank, you're working, and I still get royalty checks. So why should I run around all over the country when I can easily write a story based right here in Metropolis, and still be a hands on mom." She finished logically.

He smiled in agreement, and gently lay Daniel down on the matt beside his brother, before linking his fingers with hers to tug her up beside him on the couch.

They watched as Fred once again automatically moved over fractionally to ensure neither baby could accidently roll near the coffee table before hitting him, and smiled when their boys simultaneously began to roll from their sides, onto their backs then onto their sides again, over and over, waving their little arms and feet in the air.

Turning to press his lips against the side of her head, Clark smiled happily "I just look at them and can't believe they're really ours Lo."

"I know, when you asked me if I wanted kids years ago, I wasn't sure." She shook her head "I'm not sorry we didn't have them earlier because I don't know if I would have been ready before, but I am now. Now I can't imagine not having them with us."

Letting go of her hand, his arm slipped around her waist and squeezed gently "Maybe we didn't have them years ago because for one reason or another it wasn't the right time for us. Destiny always has a plan babe; we found each other again at the right time, and now we have two beautiful sons because it's the right time. You're ready, and so am I."

"You weren't ready before." Lois asked softly in surprise.

He turned to meet her eyes and shrugged lightly "If we'd had them before I wouldn't have regretted it, but for the next 20 to 25 years at least they'll be with us. I'm happy about that, and sad to think they won't need us as much one day when they leave to build a life of their own. However, that's a long way down the road, so I'm glad that I had you to myself for a few years before they came along."

"Me too." Leaning up she pressed her lips to his.

He cupped her cheek to deepen the kiss, lifting his mouth a minute later, only to swoop forward to press his lips to hers lightly once, twice and again, before lifting clear.

Settling her head on his shoulder, Lois looked at her boys, and smiled then frowned a moment later before shifting to face her husband in alarm "What are we going to do if either of our boys turn out like us when we were teenagers?"

Clark's brows rose in humour "What'd you mean, we were pretty good kids."

"Oh please!" She snorted lightly in disagreement.

"Well you were 18 when we met, but I didn't think you were _that_ bad; and neither did my parents. As for me; well mom and dad thought I was a great kid." Clark defended stoutly.

"Firstly, I did most of my rebellion before coming to Smallville, so you have no idea. And the reason your parents didn't think I was so bad was because I didn't put them through the same grief that I did my father, which was mostly done for impact by the way. And secondly, you were such a glum pain about Lana; that I came off like Mary Sunshine in comparison. I don't want teenagers like either of us." Lois shuddered delicately.

"You used to say that I was a good guy." He reminded her pointedly.

"Yeah, and you used to say that I drank too much, but who do you think drove me to drink?" She asked sweetly.

His brows lifted high in surprise "I wasn't that bad."

Her brows likewise lifted in return "Want me to remind you of all the ways you weren't 'that bad'." She asked tweaking her fingers in the quote sign.

He shook his head quickly "Not necessary."

She inclined her head "Right; your mom couldn't have kids, so even when you grew up to be one of the two most painful teenagers in history, she was able to be tolerant with your crap because she still felt blessed for finding you in the first place. However, if either of our boys act like we did and try their nonsense with me when they get older, I'm going to remember what it was like giving birth to them and if they give me any lip, I'll give them a clip across the ear."

He burst out laughing at her summarisation "What if they're super-powered?"

"Then I'll remind you what I was like in labour, and get you to smack them for me."

He remembered the cursing, the way she threatened to cut off his family jewels and nodded firmly "Agreed." After shaking her hand in solidarity, Clark asked curiously "So if you don't want teenagers like us, what kind do you want?"

"The kind that say; yes mom, no mom, I love you mom." Lois replied swiftly.

"Ah, every parents wish." He mocked lightly, and when she gave him the fish eye, shrugged unapologetically "It sounds nice babe, but not realistic."

"I can dream can't I?" She groused in return.

"Ok, so what...." He broke off to lean down and put the small stuffed toy back in Michael's hand when it fell out of reach then sat back up and continued "So what do you think we should do if our kids do become teenagers like us?"

"I don't know about you, but I'm running away from home." Lois declared stoutly.

"Not without me you're not." He put in quickly. Coughing lightly he slipped his hand under her shirt to stroke the small of her back "I can't promise anything about the boys, but I bet our little girl will be an angel."

"What little girl?"

"Well you know; if we have another." Clark smiled charmingly.

Lois looked at him incredulous "Are you nuts? I only had these two five months ago, and you're thinking about knocking me up again already."

"Just a little bit."

"How can I be knocked up a little bit?"

"I mean I've been thinking about it a little bit." He corrected with a grin "So what'd you think about us practicing again after theses little tykes have been put to bed."

"Clark, we've had so much practice that if there was a sexual Olympics, we'd certainly win the gold medal." She replied in a droll voice. He chuckled in appreciation and tilting her head she added "And what'd you mean by _again_? We only took a short break just before the boys were born, and started up again almost 6 weeks to the date after they made their grand entrance into the world."

"Well yeah, but that's not the point." He replied lightly "At the moment you're outnumbered babe. Including Fred there are four males in this house but you're the only female. So if we try for a girl, it'll even things up."

"And what happens if we try for a girl and have another boy?" She asked with lifted brow.

"Well you know the saying; if at first you don't succeed, try, try again." He replied in a sing song.

"Stay away from me you horny alien."

"But you looked so beautiful, all big and round." He coaxed gently.

"I looked humongously pregnant."

"No you didn't…" He disputed automatically then laughingly tacked on "You were much too big to be classified as a humongous; ginormous is closer to the truth."

She smacked his arm then smiled when he added "And you still looked beautiful."

"Good save."

"Thank you...." He tilted his head and asked softly "Do you know what the cutest thing you did was when you were pregnant?" At the curious half smile on her face, he stroked his finger down her cheek "It was when you used your tummy as a stable table. I'd look up and see you with the plate or cup resting on your belly, and you didn't even realise you were doing it until I pointed it out."

She giggled softly in remembrance "Well it was there and it was handy, so why not?"

He picked up his phone and showed her the picture he kept on it. Lois laughed at the photo of herself with her feet up, fast asleep, with her cup balanced nicely on her tummy. Tilting his head to look at it again, Clark smiled tenderly "I took this one day when I got home from work before waking you up. I love this picture; it has my wife and my boys all in one photo; even though you can't see them yet."

Pressing her lips to his cheek, she asked seriously "Do you really want us to have another baby?"

"I'm grateful for the two we have, so I think we should leave it to fate and if it happens then it was meant to be." He answered honestly.

"Yeah; we're using birth control again, so how about this..." She paused and smiled lightly "...if we get pregnant even while using protection it was meant to be, if we don't then it wasn't."

"Deal." Leaning forward to seal the deal with a kiss, their heads automatically turned instead at the soft woof, to find their sons were fast asleep.

Knowing neither boy would wake up if a herd of elephants trampled through the house, Clark picked up one, Lois the other and they made their way to the nursery to tuck them into bed. After switching on the baby monitor, they stepped outside and made their way back to the living room to find Fred sitting up, waiting patiently for his share of attention.

While Clark took Fred for a night time flight around the neighbourhood, Lois set the table for dinner and the rest of the night was spent lazily watching TV, while listening to the soft snorts and snuffles coming from upstairs.

Curling around his wife in bed, Clark brushed his hand lazily over her arm and smiled softly "We've been together for over 7 years Lo, and just as I'm amazed when I look at our boys and I can't believe they're ours; I still find myself looking at you and my heart turns over the same way it did when I first saw you in that restaurant." Shifting to look down at her, his eyes traced over her face and his head shook lightly back and forth "I don't know what I did to be so richly blessed, but I'll never stop being grateful for it."

Lois lifted her hand and cupped his cheek "The morning after we first spent the night together, I was kind of uncomfortable and went to see Carly. She told me it was obvious you had intentions towards me." She smiled ruefully at her own naiveté "I told her that I'd thought you had, but later figured I must have been wrong."

"You thought I just wanted sex." Clark asked with a small smile.

"Yeah."

"You should have listened to your friend."

"I did."

"No you didn't, if you had you would have known that I was never, ever going to settle for that." He replied softly. When she turned on her side, he likewise lay down to face her.

Leaning forward she pressed her lips to his "I'm glad that I didn't listen to her, otherwise when you came to Seattle I wouldn't have given us a chance. I imagine right now I'd be content with only Fred and my friends for companionship, but I wouldn't be even close to feeling as happy and loved as I do with you and our boys."

"If you had listened to her and tried to drive me away, right now I imagine you'd be living contently with Fred, and finding yourself falling for the squatter who'd taken up permanent residence in your backyard." His lips lifted softly in challenge "And you would have fallen, because he wouldn't have given up until you had."

Lois giggled softly "Does this squatter have a name?"

He scooped his arm around her waist and tugged her closer "Clark Kent."

"You know another man with the same name as you?" She teased softly.

Instead of laughing, he shook his head and assured her quietly "Nope, there was never any fear that I'd let another man get that close to you."

Running her hand over his back she whispered "Well Clark Kent did become a squatter but it wasn't on my land, it was in my heart and he's made a permanent home there."

Keeping her eyes captive, he leant his forehead against hers "Does that mean I own the title to the deed of your heart?"

"Yes; you've been the owner for years."

Pressing his lips to hers softly he smiled "Good, because I signed over the title of mine to you on the night I found you again."

She smiled in return and they continued to look at each other, listening to their sons softly snuffling through the baby monitor, until sleep found them also.

***

_Sometime during the night_

When the rain began to fall softly the house was silent, as it became heavier and thunder began to rumble softly in the distance, the human element in the house kept snoozing, but Fred's ears pricked up. As the thunder gained in volume, booming faintly, then louder, closer the animal darted out of his doggy bed, ran into the bedroom and licked Clark's face.

Coming awake at the feeling of a wet tongue swiping over his cheek, he huffed out a small laugh, and patted the dog absently "It's ok boy, it's just a storm."

Yawning softly, he got out of bed, zipped into the hallway and returned with the dog's bed, which was placed at the foot of their own. Fred climbed in, curled up and after tucking the blanket around him, Clark continued to soothe the beast while looking through the wall and into the boy's room, to find both were still fast asleep.

The thunder continued to grumble and roll, the rain lashed down on the roof, beating against the windows; and at the harsh crack of lightening, Lois shot up in bed with a jump "Shit!"

"Do I need to soothe you down too?" Clark asked amused.

Letting out a sleepy laugh, she rubbed her hands over her face "Is Freddy ok?"

"He's fine..." Clark began then stopped and amended "...well he was until that crack of lightening, but he's calming down again."

"The boys?"

His lips curved into a half smile "Believe it or not, they're still asleep."

"I'll just go and check." She pushed aside the blankets and began to climb out of bed, but stopped at her husband's voice "Lo, we've got the night light on in their room so I can see them clearly, and I can hear them even over all this noise and without the baby monitor; trust me, they're both still asleep."

Nodding she tugged the blankets back over herself "Ok."

Once the thunder died away, the animal fell back to sleep. Climbing back into bed, Clark gathered Lois in his arms, and the two toppled down to the mattress.

He curled around his wife, she tugged his arm closer around her, and scooted back against him "I love going to sleep with your arms around me, and the rain overhead." She murmured around a yawn.

"Me too baby." He returned sleepily, pressing his lips to the join of her shoulder and neck "Me too."

The End

**

Authors Note: You can make up your own mind whether they have a little girl or not. In my head the answer is no; they only have the two boys and a very happy life together. But if you want them to have a daughter, then please go ahead and imagine all you wish, lol.

Dg17; as promised, I've finally answered your question of whether they'll have a baby or not, lol

I hope you all liked the ending as much as the rest of the story. I'm really pleased that so many of you have enjoyed reading this new version of the 'Superman tale' as much as I've enjoyed writing it.

Linda


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